Batang Baram Bridge (ASEAN Bridge)

The Batang Baram Bridge or ASEAN Bridge is a bridge located along Miri-Baram Highway which directly links Sarawak with Brunei across the Batang Baram via the existing Immigration Checkpoint at Sungai Tujuh, which is the check point out of Sarawak and into Brunei. The bridge is a vital link between Sarawak & Brunei.

History

Previously Miri-Brunei travellers crossed the river by use of ferries near the Baram rivermouth. On particularly heavy traffic days such as holidays, two ferries would operate simultanously. The use of ferries to cross required waiting times and long queues of cars at the ferry points are extremely common. Incidentally, on the Brunei side there is also a river to cross, which required a ferry to operate as well, so Miri-Brunei travellers are hit with a double whammy of queues awating ferries that only carry 10 to 15 cars at a time.

Eventually, around the late 1990s a bridge had already been built at the Brunei Kuala Belait side of the border, and all the traffic that was by then heavily bottlenecked at the Baram River. Thus the people are left wanting a permanent solution to such problems and a need cross the river effectively.

The construction of the ASEAN bridge and its accompanying access road officially began on January 17th, 2001 and was completed in August of 2003.

Beginning 1st of June, 2015 tolls are no longer charged to drivers of Sarawak-registered vehicles.

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