All they want for Xmas is no jam

Bumper-to-bumper: The long traffic crawl at the Kundasang-Ranau road taken by a social media user.

KOTA KINABALU: It was supposed to be a jolly good time for tourism operators during the recent long Christmas weekend with people flocking to Ranau in the foothills of Mount Kinabalu.

However, according to Ranau Tourism Association president Malvin Marcus, it was not the case as many motorists and visitors were stuck in a traffic crawl on the single lane Kundasang-Ranau road.

Normally, there is not much traffic during non-peak periods.

“It will usually take between five and 10 minutes to ply through the road to get to your destination but during peak seasons, it can stretch to several hours,” he said when contacted.

“Kundasang to Ranau town or the Lohan area takes about 30 minutes’ drive but if visitors are stuck in Kundasang for three to four hours, other attractions would be closed by then.

“So instead of visiting places of interest, visitors ended up spending more time in their cars on the road.

“This makes them frustrated, causing them to divert to other destinations,” Marcus said.

Since 2019, Sabah has been enjoying Dec 24 as an additional holiday for Christmas.

Since this year’s Christmas Eve is on a Sunday, it was replaced with Tuesday, leading to a four-day holiday from Dec 23.

As such, Marcus urged the government and relevant authorities to give serious attention on the issue of congestion, pointing out that it had given a negative effect to the tourism industry in Ranau, beside disrupting the daily lives of locals.

He said it was not true as claimed by some on social media that only tourism operators were benefiting from the influx of tourists.

“The tourism sector in Ranau cannot compromise with this situation anymore as it involves losses of thousands of ringgit in revenue.

“We urge the authorities to resolve this matter urgently like opening alternative routes as well as upgrading existing or alternative roads,” he said.

Marcus said although the traffic crawl was seasonal, it should not be viewed lightly as the issue not only affected tourism players but ordinary Ranau folk.

He said traffic lights should also be installed at several points on the stretch to ensure smooth traffic flow.

He said signages must be erected as well to clearly indicate alternative routes as many tourists are still unaware of them.

“Besides of that, traffic police should be deployed during peak seasons.

“Ranau is among the districts that contribute significantly to Sabah’s economy but is left out in terms of facilities or development.

“We are ready to sit down with the related agencies to find an immediate solution,” Marcus added.