Karak Expressway
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| E 8 E8 expressway |
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  MTD Prime Sdn Bhd |
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| Length (kilometres) | 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 |
| Road/Expressway joined | 28Kuala Lumpur Middle Ring Road 2 68Genting Sempah-Genting Highlands Highway 68 Federal route 68 8 Federal route 8 2 Federal route 2 E 8East Coast Expressway |
| Asian Highway Network | none |
| Technical specifications | |
| Number of lanes | 6 lane Gombak - Genting Sempah 4 lane Genting Sempah - Karak |
| Interchanges | 6 |
| Toll plazas | 2 |
| P Layby | 3 |
| R&R Rest and Service Area | 1 |
| R&R Overhead Bridge Restaurant | none |
| V Vista Point | 1 |
| Highway tunnels | 1 (Genting Sempah Tunnel) |
| Type of roads | Tarmac |
| Toll systems | Open toll systems |
The Kuala Lumpur-Karak Expressway or Karak Expressway E 8 (Lebuhraya Kuala Lumpur-Karak, Lebuhraya Karak), or also known as Karak Highway is a 60-km (37-mile) partial-access expressway or motorway 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 (56 mph).
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[edit] 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, E 8, which resulted in overlapping route numbers. As a result, some maps labelled Karak Expressway as E 8 and some other maps labelled 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 – 17 people including 11 FRU riot police personal were killed in a collision between FRU riot police vehicles, a tanker lorry, a passenger bus and 10 cars at kilometre 32.5 of the highway not far from Genting Sempah Tunnel in Gombak, Selangor.
[edit] Toll rates
[edit] Gombak toll plaza (GBK)
| 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 | RM5.00 |
| 2 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 5 or 6 wheels excluding buses | RM10.00 |
| 3 | Vehicles with 3 or more axles | RM15.00 |
| 4 | Taxis | RM2.50 |
| 5 | Buses | RM5.00 |
[edit] Bentong toll plaza (BTG)
| 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 | RM3.00 |
| 2 | Vehicles with 2 axles and 5 or 6 wheels excluding buses | RM6.00 |
| 3 | Vehicles with 3 or more axles | RM9.00 |
| 4 | Taxis | RM1.50 |
| 5 | Buses | RM3.00 |
- (Source: Utusan Malaysia, 15 December 2006)
[edit] List of interchanges, laybays and rest and service areas
| km | Exit | Interchange | To | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GOMBAK NORTH INTERCHANGE | 28KUALA LUMPUR MIDDLE RING ROAD 2 WEST 28Batu Caves 2Kuala Lumpur 1Ipoh 28Kepong  E 11Petaling JayaSOUTH 28Ulu Klang 28Ampang 28Cheras E 6Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) E 2Seremban E 2Johor Bahru E 5Shah Alam E 5Klang |
Directional T expressway interchange | |||
| 28 KUALA LUMPUR MIDDLE RING ROAD 2 JKR border limit |
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| E 8 KARAK EXPRESSWAY Start/End of expressway MTD Prime border limit |
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| E 8 0 2 -- |
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| Gombak toll plaza GBK RM (Cash) TnG TAG TAG TnG RM (Cash) Opened toll systems Pay toll |
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| P Gombak toll plaza GBK |
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East Coast bound | |||
| P Gombak Layby | Layby |
East Coast bound | |||
| PBH Petrol BH Petrol Layby |  BH Petrol |
East Coast bound | |||
| P Gombak Layby | Layby Lemang stalls |
West Coast bound | |||
| Malaysian Road Transport Department (JPJ) Enforcement Stations | Malaysian Road Transport Department (JPJ) Enforcement Stations | East Coast bound | |||
| U-Turn | U-Turn | ||||
| P Lemang stalls | Layby Lemang stalls |
East coast bound | |||
| E 8 30 2 --- |
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| E 8 31 2 --- |
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| Start/End of separated carriageway | |||||
| Kuala Lumpur bound, Use lower gear Start/End of separated carriageway |
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| EXIT 803A | GENTING SEMPAH INTERCHANGE 570m above sea level |
EXIT 803A 68GENTING SEMPAH-GENTING HIGHLANDS HIGHWAY Genting Highlands Gohtong Jaya Institut Aminuddin Baki |
Expressway interchange From/To West Coast only |
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| Selangor Darul Ehsan Gombak district border |
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| Genting Sempah Tunnel 700 metres Selangor-Pahang border |
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| Pahang Darul Makmur Bentong district border |
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| EXIT 803B | GENTING SEMPAH INTERCHANGE 561 m above sea level MTD Prime maintenance office MTD Prime Genting Sempah Tunnel Monitoring and Maintenance Centre |
EXIT 803B 68Genting Sempah 68Genting Highlands 68Gohtong Jaya 68Institut Aminuddin Baki C7Janda Baik |
West coast bound | ||
| R&RGenting Sempah rest and service area 560m above sea level |
Petronas McDonalds ATM |
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| Kuantan bound, Use lower gear Start/End of separated carriageway |
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| EXIT 803B | GENTING SEMPAH INTERCHANGE 559 m above sea level MTD Prime maintenance office MTD Prime Genting Sempah Tunnel Monitoring and Maintenance Centre |
EXIT 803B 68Genting Sempah 68Genting Highlands 68Gohtong Jaya 68Institut Aminuddin Baki C7Janda Baik |
Expressway interchange | ||
| PV Genting Sempah vista point and truck stops | V Truck stops |
West Coast bound | |||
| Start/End of separated carriageway Start/End of six-lane carriageway |
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| Kampung Bukit Tinggi | 68Kampung Bukit Tinggi Selesa Homes Golf and Country Resort |
Small interchange Both directions |
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| E 8 47 2 -- |
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| E 8 48 2 -- |
EXIT 805 | BUKIT TINGGI INTERCHANGE | Berjaya Hills Resort (formerly known as "Bukit Tinggi Resort") |
Trumpet interchange | |
| Sungai Benus bridge | |||||
| PLentang Layby | Layby Lentang waterfall and forest reserve U-Turn |
Both bound | |||
| U-Turn | U-Turn | ||||
| Dusun Eco Resort | |||||
| PPetronas Petronas Layby | Petronas ATM Singgah Food Court |
East Coast bound | |||
| Sungai Benus bridge | |||||
| Bentong toll plaza BTG RM (Cash) TnG TAG TAG TnG RM (Cash) Opened toll systems Pay toll |
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| P Bentong toll plaza BTG |
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| P Bentong Layby | |
West Coast bound | |||
| EXIT 808 | BENTONG WEST INTERCHANGE | 8Bentong 8Raub 8Kuala Lipis |
East Coast bound | ||
| Maktab Rendah Sains Mara (MRSM) Bentong | |||||
| U-Turn | U-Turn | ||||
| EXIT 810 | BENTONG EAST INTERCHANGE | 8Bentong 8Raub 8Kuala Lipis |
Trumpet interchange | ||
| Taman Benus Jaya | |||||
| Kampung Sungai Dua | Diamond interchange | ||||
| E 8 77 2 --- |
EXIT 813A EXIT 813B |
KARAK INTERCHANGE | EXIT 813A C138FELDA Mempaga Pusat Serenti Mempaga EXIT 813B 2Karak 9Mancis 9Kuala Pilah |
Trumpet interchange | |
| E 8 KARAK EXPRESSWAY |
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| E 8 EAST COAST EXPRESSWAY |
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| EAST E 8EAST COAST EXPRESSWAY Kuala Terengganu Kuantan Temerloh Lanchang |
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[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
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