Going to work early, leaving office late to avoid jams

PETALING JAYA: Traffic jams in the Klang Valley have forced residents leave home earlier to go to work, while others stay at their workplaces after working hours to avoid the peak hour rush when they go home.

Business development executive James Tho, 31, said he spent at least two hours on the road daily.

“My route includes toll booths, which are also congested,” he said.

“The congestion can get ridiculous. Sometimes, I will be stuck along a 100m stretch for half an hour,” he added.

Content writer S. Mary, 30, said she always skipped breakfast to make it to office in Kuala Lumpur on time from her house in Gombak.“I need to leave home by 6.30am. Even then, I still get caught near the city centre.

“My return home also sees me leaving the office only at 8pm to avoid jams,” she said.

She added that in the rush to leave the house, she would sometimes forget to bring her work essentials such as her laptop.

Muhd Aqil, 44, said he would leave as early as 5.30am to make it to his workplace in Subang Jaya on time.

“Thanks to flexible working hours, I can start work at 7am and clock out by 4pm, which is before the start of the peak hour traffic,” he said, adding that he travelled from Wangsa Maju daily.