KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 6 — Over 6,000 traffic policemen will make their presence felt when the nationwide exodus to hometowns starts this Thursday, notably at 64 hotspots and blackspots identified on highways, as Op Selamat 21 will be held from February 8-13 in conjunction with the Chinese New Year (CNY).

The Bukit Aman Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Department (JSPT) is deploying 6,559 officers across the country for the assignment, said its director Datuk Mohd Azman Ahmad Sapri, adding that all personnel leave has been frozen to ensure smooth operation of the Op Selamat, themed "JSPT’s Presence Felt”.

He said Op Selamat would be reinforced with motorbike patrols to prevent burglaries on homes left vacant and theft of property during the long festival.

"Throughout the festive season, we expect a higher volume of vehicles on the highways, especially for the return trip home,” he said.

Mohd Azman said this as a guest on the "Selamat Pagi Malaysia” programme broadcast by Radio Television Malaysia (RTM) here today.

Meanwhile, he said there are 547 hotspot and blackspot locations identified across the country.

"A total of 18 hotspot locations and 46 blackspot areas were identified on all highways while 407 hotspot locations and 76 blackspot locations were detected on roads in states and districts.

"Blackspot areas are places that have recorded more than three fatal accidents, while hotspots are congested areas,” he said.

He said the people are encouraged to use the Volunteer Smartphone Patrol (VSP) application to fill in important details before leaving home for the long festive season.

"This is so that the PDRM can put enough officers in the field, where periodic patrols will also be carried out by the Motorcycle Patrol Unit (URB) to prevent community crimes from happening,” he said. — Bernama