PLUS is anticipating over 1.9 million vehicles per day on its highways over the long Deepavali weekend and extended school holiday, which is from this weekend till Wednesday, October 26. That’s 200,000 more than the typical 1.7 million vehicles on normal working days.
The North-South Highway operator has released a travel time advisory to distribute traffic. The TTA recommends those from the Klang Valley heading to Perlis, Kedah/Penang, North Perak and Johor to enter the highway before 10am. If you’re travelling back to the Klang Valley from these states from October 24-26, enter the highway before 9am.
To facilitate a smoother journey, PLUS, with support from the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) and the police, will activate a SmartLane at the Bukit Tambun-Juru toll plaza and Sungai Petani Selatan-Tikam Batu lay-by to reduce congestion. Stop work orders have been issued to ensure that lane capacity will not be compromised during this busy period.
Specifically, the SmartLane will use the emergency lanes for northbound traffic from Bukit Tambun (KM150) towards Juru toll plaza (KM146.2) from 3pm to 6pm on October 21. For southbound traffic on October 26, emergency lanes will be open from Sungai Petani Selatan (KM107.6) towards Tikam Batu lay-by (KM113) from 2pm till 6pm.
PLUS will also ensure that no lane closures for highway maintenance or upgrading works will be carried out between October 21-25. However, lane closures will need to be temporarily activated to make way for immediate accident clearance and cleaning works as well as for emergencies or critical maintenance.
“Throughout this Deepavali festive period, a total of 512 PLUSRonda personnel, an 8% increase from the normal working day, will be on ground to assist highway customers, in case of any eventualities,” said PLUS COO Datuk Zakaria Ahmad Zabidi, who added that the operator is cognizant of the need to maximise highway lane capacity for smoother traffic flow at critical locations.
Remember to ensure that your car is in good condition before you travel, and that you have sufficient balance in your Touch n Go card for toll payment. Drive safe.
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