The first major festival of 2023 – Chinese New Year – is coming and as with other festivals, the roads will be filled with more traffic. In fact, it’s already started in the cities as many people grumble about the increased volume lately, making it longer getting around.
In the days just before Chinese New Year, which falls on January 20, the highways are going to start to see more traffic and PLUS estimates that the volume could reach 2 million vehicles on its highway network on the peak days. That’s 20% higher than the number on normal days, so be prepared for journeys to take longer and the R&R places to be more crowded.
But PLUS has long experience with such situations as it is an annual affair (and happens a few times each year too), so it has formulated strategies and proactive measures to help cope with more traffic and also ensure safety for all highway users.
The strategies include safety, traffic and congestion management, highway users’ convenience, traffic management at toll plazas as well as traffic information dissemination throughout the holiday period.
PLUS will collaborate with the PDRM and Road Transport Department for stricter traffic law enforcement on the highways as well as carry out continuous road safety advocacy throughout the festive period.
“Our main focus is the safety of our highway users, and we will carry out various steps to increase safety on the highways. At the same time, we advise motorcyclists and heavy vehicle drivers to be more careful on the road and take the necessary safety precautions throughout the festive season,” days,” said PLUS Chief Operating Officer, Datuk Zakaria Ahmad Zabidi.
According to Datuk Zakaria, motorcyclists accounted for 64% of the total number of fatal accidents on PLUS-operated highways in 2022. “In addition, heavy vehicle accidents are one of the major causes of major traffic congestion on our highways as they require more time to be cleared and removed. These accidents also require the use of heavy machineries such as cranes and special equipment,” Datuk Zakaria explained.
PLUS will also increase the number of highway patrolling teams on its highways, including Lebuhraya Pantai Timur 2 (LPT2) during this festive period. The 9.1% increase will have 265 teams on duty day and night to assist highway users in distress and emergencies.
Motorists using the highways are advised to take note of the PLUS Travel Time Advisory (TTA) for the North-South Expressway and LPT2. The TTA is based on data over the years and helps distribute traffic so the public can have a smoother journey on their outbound and homebound travels during the holidays.
Datuk Zakaria also reminded motorists that it is important for highway users to use the same payment mode upon entry and exit of the highway. For example, if RFID is used upon entry, the user must then exit the highway also using RFID; likewise with using Touch‘nGo and SmartTAG. Using the same mode of payment will greatly reduce the possibility of congestion at the toll lanes,” he said..
It’s also important to make sure one’s e-Wallet (for RFID transactions) or Touch‘nGo card has sufficient balance for travel. The amount required for toll payment can be determined at the PLUS website or PLUS app so make sure that much is available in the stored balance. Insufficient balance will prevent passage through the toll plaza and cause inconvenience to other motorists behind.
PLUS has made a commitment to add 12 more RFID lanes at 11 major toll plazas on its highways. These are the toll plazas at Rawang Selatan, Setia Alam, Kubang Semang, Subang, Putra Mahkota, Shah Alam, Jalan Duta, Penang Bridge, Sungai Buloh, Sungai Besi, and Kajang. The additions will be done in stages and completed by mid-April this year.
