SEREMBAN, July 9 — Negri Sembilan police have tightened monitoring, especially at 18 hotspot routes statewide which are expected to be congested due to the increase in the number of vehicles in conjunction with the Aidiladha celebration tomorrow.

State police chief Datuk Ruslan Khalid said the routes involved four locations along the North-South Expressway (PLUS), Nilai (three), Seremban (two), Tampin (two), Kuala Pilah (two), Jempol (two) while one location each in Port Dickson, Jelebu and Rembau.

“A total of 303 officers and personnel are involved in the operations. Police will conduct patrols on highways as well as federal and state roads with special assignments from the traffic division, mobile patrol vehicles (MPV), motorcycle patrol units (URB) and police station chiefs.

“Enforcement has already started yesterday and it will last until July 11, and in this operation, we are more focused on the smooth flow of traffic. Enforcement action is only imposed if the offence occurs openly,” he told Bernama here today.

In the meantime, he said a total of 790,000 or an increase of 75 per cent of vehicles are expected to enter the state in conjunction with Aidiladha compared with 451,000 vehicles on a normal day.

Ruslan advised people who want to return to Johor from Kuala Lumpur to use the PLUS route directly, while those who want to go to Negri Sembilan or Melaka can use the Kajang-Seremban Highway as well as federal and state roads.

“For those who want to go to the east coast from Kuala Lumpur through the state can use federal and state roads such as Jalan Jelebu or Kuala Pilah to Muadzam Shah, to avoid congestion,” he said.

He also advised motorists to drive prudently and obey police instructions as well as traffic, and not cut queues using emergency lanes.

“Those who are in the villages must always be careful because the number of vehicles is increasing and the situation has become unusual during this festive season apart from not allowing their vehicles to be driven by individuals who do not have a valid driving licence,” he said. — Bernama