KUALA LUMPUR: Traffic on several major highways across the country began to slow down this afternoon as vehicle numbers increased, with the public starting their journeys ahead of Deepavali tomorrow.
A Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA) spokesman said the affected routes included the northbound stretch of the North-South Expressway (NSE) E1 from Trolak to Bidor, Gopeng to Simpang Pulai, Alor Pongsu to Jawi, and Prai to Bertam, along with the southbound stretch from Prai to Juru.
In addition, traffic on the North-South Expressway (NSE) E2 was also building up and moving slowly at several stretches, including the northbound route from Sungai Besi toll plaza to the city centre, Bandar Seri Putra to Bangi, Sedenak to Ayer Hitam, and Skudai to Senai, as well as the southbound route from Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) to Bangi, Nilai to Senawang, and Kempas to Pasir Gudang.
“Traffic was also slow at the Johor Causeway, from Woodlands Checkpoint (CIQ) in Singapore to Sultan Iskandar CIQ in Johor in the northbound direction, while congestion was reported on the Second Link Expressway, from the Second Link Bridge to Sultan Abu Bakar CIQ in Johor, also northbound,” they said when contacted today.
Traffic volume had also increased on the North-South Expressway Central Link (ELITE), affecting the northbound stretches from Gamuda Cove to Bandar Saujana Putra and Putra Heights to Shah Alam, as well as the southbound stretch from Putra Heights to Gamuda Cove.
On the Cheras-Kajang Expressway (Grand Saga), traffic was slow on the northbound stretch from Bandar Tun Hussein Onn to Taman Suntex, while on the Kuala Lumpur-Karak Expressway (KLK), the affected routes were from Gombak Toll Plaza to Lentang and from Km78.9 to Karak toll plaza in the eastbound direction.
Meanwhile, on the Sungai Besi Expressway (Besraya), traffic was slow on the northbound stretches from Bandar Tasik Selatan to Kuchai and Serdang to Pekan Sungai Besi.
On the Damansara-Puchong Expressway (LDP), the affected stretches were Kelana Jaya to Damansara Utama and Bandar Bukit Puchong to Jalan Majlis in the northbound direction, while traffic was slow from Penchala to Damansara Utama and Sunway to Bandar Bukit Puchong in the southbound direction.
On the Kajang Dispersal Link Expressway (SILK), traffic was slow from Country Heights to Putrajaya via the South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE) in the westbound direction, as well as from Kajang Prima to Kajang Perdana in the eastbound direction.
Also affected was the Kajang-Seremban Expressway (LEKAS), with slow traffic from Kajang Selatan to Semenyih in the southbound direction, while on the South Klang Valley Expressway (SKVE), traffic was slow from MAEPS Serdang to Sultan Idris Shah Hospital in Serdang in the eastbound direction.
The public can obtain the latest traffic updates via the 24-hour hotline at 1800-88-7752 and through the X platforms @plustrafik and @llmtrafik.