Raya exodus commences; traffic building up on several major expressways

PETALING JAYA: Traffic on major roads is building up as travellers get a head start on the Hari Raya Aidiladha celebrations and school holidays next week.

Traffic buildups were observed on major roads around the Klang Valley, especially those heading towards the East Coast, southern and northern states, including the Middle Ring Road 2 and North South Highway (PLUS).

On the North-South Expressway (PLUS) northbound (E1), traffic was slow from Bidor to Tapah, Tapah to Gopeng and from the Sungai Dua junction to the Sungai Dua Toll Plaza.

Meanwhile, the southbound (E2) route saw increased traffic in the Senawang to Seremban area, from Ayer Hitam to Yong Peng, following an accident at (KM94.0) northbound as well as heavy traffic from the Skudai to Senai Toll Plaza.

LLM senior assistant director of operations and maintenance Ahmad Kamil Abdul Halim said that traffic movement data had already recorded 2.9 million vehicles entering the highway as of Friday (May 22).

"Several critical areas have been identified as hotspots, namely on the KL-Karak Highway (KLK) and East Coast Expressway Phase 1 (LPT1), involving the Gombak to Genting Sempah route (both directions), Lanchang to Bukit Tinggi, and the Lanchang to Temerloh route.

"For the outbound phase (from the Klang Valley), increased traffic is expected from May 22 to 26 for the East Coast route, as well as until May 30 for the PLUS route (to the North and South).

"For the return phase (to the Klang Valley), congestion is expected to be concentrated on May 28 to June 2 for the East Coast direction, as well as June 4 to 6 for users from the North and South (PLUS) directions," he said.

On the PLUS Highway, congestion is expected to occur at climbing areas, tunnels, and lane reduction locations in the northern, central, and southern regions, including the Menora tunnel route (KM267-KM249), Tapah to Gopeng, Slim River to Sungkai, Bukit Berapit, Bangi to Putra Mahkota, Nilai, Seremban, as well as several locations in Johor (Ayer Keroh, Pagoh, Yong Peng, Sedenak, and Kulai), Ahmad Kamil added.

On Friday, the LLM said it expected the average daily traffic volume on major expressways and connecting highways to reach 3.3 million vehicles on peak days.

Traffic flow is expected to increase progressively from Friday (May 22) until June 7 due to the overlap between the festive season, public holidays and the extended school holidays.

All highway concessionaires have been told to take measures to boost safety and improve journeys throughout the period, including prohibiting lane closures except for emergency works from Saturday to June 2.

Motorists are also encouraged to plan their journeys in advance and follow the recommended Travel Time Advisory (TTA).