ABSTRACT
Since the mid-1970s, East Malaysia's Kota Kinabalu has been rapidly urbanizing; it is expanding more than densifying. Kota Kinabalu's urban spread is distinctly linear in morphology, parallel to the coastal highway and hugging the western shores of Sabah. The Kota Kinabalu Structure Plan 2030 aspires to make Kota Kinabalu a "Nature, Resorts and Maritime City". As noted by George Wong, the scarcity of a literate local population enabled many educated Chinese to earn positions in government administration. Existing private bus operators are to be absorbed into the system to provide feeder services from terminals to surrounding housing estates and commercial clusters. A potential issue of contention arising from Kota Kinabalu's urban growth concerns administrative responsibilities. Since 2015, private developers have delivered more high-rise residential units annually in Kota Kinabalu than Kuala Lumpur. Major challenge is housing provision across income groups and social classes for Kota Kinabalu's growing population.
