KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 24 — The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) recorded 1,312 road crashes across the country on the sixth day of Op Selamat 19 yesterday (Jan 23).

Bukit Aman Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department director Datuk Seri Mat Kasim Karim said it involved 1,603 vehicles, with cars recording the highest number of cases at 1,160.

This was followed by four-wheel drive vehicles with 210 cases, motorcycles (184), lorries and vans with 19 cases each, buses (five), taxis (four) and one bicycle and a PDRM vehicle.

Op Selamat 19 is being carried out from Jan 18-27 across the country in conjunction with the Chinese New Year festive period.

Meanwhile, Mat Kasim said traffic congestion is expected to continue until midnight tonight with an increase in the number of vehicles using the main routes to the city centre such as Gombak Toll Plaza (east) and Sungai Besi Toll Plaza (south) as people return home after the Chinese New Year holiday.

The was also an increase in the traffic volume along the North-South Expressway (PLUS) at Slim River and Changkat Jering-Ipoh stretches; East Coast Expressway Phase 1 (LPT1); Kuala Lumpur-Karak Expressway and ELITE Expressway (Shah Alam-Sepang-Nilai).

"PDRM advises road users against using the emergency lane as this would obstruct rescue teams from carrying out emergency operations in the event of an accident,” he said. — Bernama