Karak Expressway
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| {{{Highway concessionaries logo}}} | |
| E8 expressway | |
| Length | 60 km |
| Direction | west-east |
| Start | Gombak Utara, Selangor |
| Main destinations | Gombak Genting Highlands Bukit Tinggi Bentong Karak |
| End | Karak, Pahang |
| Construction dates | 1974 - 1979 |
| Expressways joined | 28Kuala Lumpur Middle Ring Road 2 68Genting Sempah-Genting Highlands Highway E 8East Coast Expressway |
Karak Expressway (E8) (Lebuhraya Karak), or also known as Karak Highway is a 60-km partial-access expressway in Malaysia connecting the capital city of Kuala Lumpur to the town of Karak in Pahang. It incorporates a twin tunnel at Genting Sempah, near one of Malaysia's famous highland resorts, Genting Highlands. Originally, the highway was used to be a two-lane toll road before being upgraded to an expressway in 1997. The speed limit on the expressway is 90 km/h.
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[edit] The history
[edit] Two-lane Federal Road
Karak Highway was originally built in 1970s by the government of Malaysia as an alternative for the winding, narrow Federal Route 68 which runs from Gombak in Kuala Lumpur to Bentong, Pahang. The highway is also a part of Federal Route 2 (not to be confused with Federal Highway). The highway included a 900-m tunnel at Genting Sempah, which became Malaysia's first highway tunnel ever constructed. It was officially opened on 1979 by Minister of Works and Communications that time Dato Abdul Ghani Gilong.
However, the cost of the construction of this highway was considered as expensive for Malaysia which at that time was an agricultural country. Therefore, the government decided to make Karak Highway as a toll road to help covering all the construction works. As a result, two toll gates were constructed at Gombak and Bentong and the toll road was administered under Malaysian Highway Authority. The highway was officially opened to traffic in 1977.
[edit] Multi-lane expressway
The importance of Karak Highway as the main road from Kuala Lumpur to eastern states of Peninsular Malaysia resulted in the government's decision to upgrade the highway to a multi-lane expressway by duplicating the whole highway stretch at another side. Thus, the former 2-lane highway become a dual-carriageway with 6 lanes (3 at each direction) from Kuala Lumpur to Genting Highlands exit and 4 lanes (2 at each direction) for the rest of the expressway.
The upgrading works also included the construction of a second tunnel located beside the existing tunnel to provide additional two lanes for eastbound traffic, widening the toll gates at Gombak and Bentong and also constructing interchanges to replace junctions. However, some junctions were impossible to be upgraded to interchanges due to their geographical locations and therefore some U-turns were constructed to provide entry and exit to the junction for the opposite direction of the expressway. The upgrade works of the expressway was completed in 1997.
MTD Prime holds the concession of Karak Expressway together with East Coast Expressway. By the completion of Karak Expressway, the expressway acquired its official route number, E8, which resulted in overlapping route numbers. As a result, some maps labeled Karak Expressway as E8 and some other maps labeled the expressway as Federal Route 2. No matter which route number is used to refer to Karak Expressway, both route numbers can be used since the expressway itself is a part of Federal Route 2.
[edit] Safety
Like other highland roads and highways, Karak Expressway faces risks of landslides especially during rainy season. Therefore, motorists are advised not to use any highland routes including Karak Expressway during heavy rain to avoid risks of landslides as well as poorer visibility.
[edit] Major events
22 January 1990 – 15 people were killed in a collision between FRU riot police vehicles, tankers lorry, passenger bus and 10 cars at kilometre 31 of highway not far from Genting Sempah Tunnel in Gombak, Selangor.
[edit] Toll rates
[edit] Gombak toll plaza
| Class | Type of vehicles | Rate (in Malaysian Ringgit (RM)) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Motorcycles, bicycles or vehicles with 2 or less wheels | Free |
| 1 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 3 or 4 wheels excluding taxis | RM4.00 |
| 2 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 5 or 6 wheels excluding buses | |
| 3 | Vehicles with 3 or more axles | |
| 4 | Taxis | |
| 5 | Buses |
[edit] Bentong toll plaza
| Class | Type of vehicles | Rate (in Malaysian Ringgit (RM)) |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Motorcycles, bicycles or vehicles with 2 or less wheels | Free |
| 1 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 3 or 4 wheels excluding taxis | RM2.50 |
| 2 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 5 or 6 wheels excluding buses | |
| 3 | Vehicles with 3 or more axles | |
| 4 | Taxis | |
| 5 | Buses |
[edit] List of interchanges, laybays and rest and service areas
| km | Exit | Interchange | To | Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 801 | Gombak Utara | 28KUALA LUMPUR MIDDLE RING ROAD II WEST Batu Caves 2Kuala Lumpur 1Ipoh Kepong E 11Petaling Jaya SOUTH Ulu Klang Ampang Cheras E 6Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) E 2Seremban E 2Johor Bahru Shah Alam Klang |
Directional T expressway interchange MTD Prime border limit |
|
| Gombak toll plaza GBK |
RM (Cash) TnG TAG TAG TnG RM (Cash) | Opened toll system Pay toll |
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| PGombak Layby | Layby | East Coast bound | ||
| BH Petrol Layby | BH petrol stations | East Coast bound | ||
| PGombak Layby | Layby | West Coast bound | ||
| Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ) Enforcement Stations | Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan (JPJ) Enforcement Stations | East Coast bound | ||
| Start/End of separated carriageway | ||||
| Kuala Lumpur bound, Use lower gear Start/End of separated carriageway |
||||
| 803A | Genting Sempah ---m above sea level |
68GENTING SEMPAH-GENTING HIGHLANDS HIGHWAY Genting Highlands |
Expressway interchange From/To West Coast only |
|
| Genting Sempah Tunnel 700 metres Selangor-Pahang border |
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| Genting Sempah rest and service area ---m above sea level |
Rest and service area Petronas petrol stations McDonalds drive thru |
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| Kuantan bound, Use lower gear Start/End of separated carriageway |
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| 803B | Genting Sempah ---m above sea level |
68Genting Sempah 68Genting Highlands C7Janda Baik |
Expressway interchange | |
| Start/End of separated carriageway Start/End of six-lane carriageway |
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| Kampung Bukit Tinggi | Kampung Bukit Tinggi | Small interchange | ||
| 805 | Bukit Tinggi | Bukit Tinggi Resort | Trumpet interchange | |
| PLentang Layby | Layby | Both bound | ||
| PPetronas Layby | Petronas petrol stations | East Coast bound | ||
| Bentong toll plaza BTG |
RM (Cash) TnG TAG TAG TnG RM (Cash) | Opened toll systems Pay toll |
||
| 809 | Bentong Barat | 8Bentong 8Raub 8Kuala Lipis |
East Coast bound | |
| U-Turn | U-Turn | |||
| 810 | Bentong Timur | 8Bentong 8Raub 8Kuala Lipis |
Trumpet interchange | |
| 813A 813B |
Karak | EXIT 813A C--FELDA Mempaga EXIT 813B 2Karak 9Mancis 9Kuala Pilah |
Trumpet interchange | |
| E 8EAST COAST EXPRESSWAY Kuala Terengganu Kuantan |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Adopted from Terowong jalan raya paling panjang - Buku Rekod Malaysia Edisi Kedua, Ghulam Jie M Khan
[edit] External links
- MTD Prime - concession holder of Karak Expressway
- Malaysian Highway Authority
- Exit lists of Karak Expressway
