If you live and work in Klang Valley and commute to your workplace by driving, you’d know all too well about the horrendous traffic jams that await you on the Federal Highway.
Essentially the main route to go to the Kuala Lumpur city centre without paying any tolls from neighbouring cities such as Subang Jaya, Shah Alam and others, a traffic jam is more or less guaranteed on weekdays and even weekends.
Shah Alam MP proposes a solution to the Federal Highway’s constant congestion
Shah Alam MP, Azli Yusof
With that in mind, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Shah Alam Azli Yusof recently took to X (formerly Twitter) to give a proposal on mitigating the traffic jam on the Federal Highway:
Building a multi-level expressway as an alternative
Taking to his official X account, Azli asserted,
“During the 90s, my commute from Shah Alam to Petaling Jaya doesn’t have this bad of a traffic jam. It’s time for the Federal Highway to have a multi-level expressway as an alternative route. Do you agree?”
In the post, he also shared a photo of the Federal Highway near the Subang Airport exit filled with vehicles at all lanes.
Malaysians disagree and criticise the proposal
However, the Pakatan Harapan (PH) MP’s suggestion was instantly turned down by a majority of Malaysians on X. Some even criticised Azli for the proposal, asserting that the government should’ve prioritised public transportation instead of making more highways.
One commenter said that he completely disagreed with the option and suggested that dedicated bus lanes with higher frequency buses should be the way forward, stressing that he would be more than happy to take the bus if this happens.
Azli then replied to the comment by congratulating the X user for being willing to take public transport.
To be a developed nation, we need better public transportation, not highways
Meanwhile, another commenter said that building multi-level expressways won’t solve the traffic jam issue and it would only benefit cronies as such projects cost a lot of money and toll concessions are super expensive.
The commenter asserted,
“If we want to be a developed nation, we should plan for better public transportation such as buses, MRT and Trams instead.”
This sentiment was echoed by another Malaysian, who revealed that studies have shown that additional lanes on the road won’t solve congestion. He then gave an ultimatum to the government, saying,
“YB asks if the rakyat is willing to take public transportation. However, the rakyat wants to ask politicians too – Are you willing to buy buses, make dedicated bus lanes or add additional coaches to KTM for the rakyat? Or do you only want always just to make expressways?”
The Shah Alam MP then replied to this, saying that the only reason he’s posing the question is to gauge feedback from the people if they’re willing to take public transportation if they’re improved.
The commenter then replied yes, saying that this goes without saying.
Besides that, in a reply to another comment, Azli stressed that he was just gauging public opinion on the matter and he would be asking about rotational/staggered hours/days to enter city centres in his next post.
So, what do you guys think of the proposal to build a multi-level Federal Highway? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.
