Here are the recommended travel times on the North-South Expressway during CNY

Chinese New Year will be a busy season for the North-South Expressway. For a smoother journey, highway concessionaire, PLUS, has revealed its travel time advisory for the festive season between 20th January to 2nd February 2020.

If you’re driving from the Klang Valley, those heading to Perlis, Kedah, Perak and Johor are recommended to start driving before 9.00am. If you’re going to other states, PLUS recommends that you enter the highway after 12.00pm.

For those that are travelling from all other states into the Klang Valley, it is recommended that you start your journey before 9.00am. According to PLUS’ analysis, the actual travel time will likely to increase by 30-80% if customers delay their journey start time and it is recommended that users follow the provided advisory for a smooth driving experience.

It is estimated that highway traffic will increase from 1.7 million cars to over 2 million cars daily during the Chinese New Year period. To anticipate the surge of vehicles, PLUS is making additional preparations to help its road users to enjoy a safe, smooth and comfortable ride.

PLUS steps up preparation to anticipate higher traffic

All non-critical maintenance and repair works will be suspended from 22nd January to 2nd February 2020, and they will place cranes and tow-trucks on standby at strategic locations on the highway.

To increase safety and security, PLUS has collaborated with the Royal Malaysian Police, Fire Department, Ambulance, Malaysian Civil Defence Agency and RELA, as well as increasing the number of PLUS volunteers on standby to provide emergency support during the festive period. PLUS has also placed more portable toilets and water tankers at various locations along the highway and they have also deployed 70 additional Touch ‘n Go self-service top-up kiosks to cater to the increased number of travellers.

As always, make sure you’ve topped-up your Touch ‘n Go card with sufficient balance to avoid unnecessary delays and inconvenience. You can locate your nearest zero-fee reload points through Waze.