Speaking to reporters after chairing today’s Cabinet meeting on traffic congestion, Loke said developers are usually only given three to six months for road closure applications.

“This is a message to all contractors doing projects which involve road closures … approval for extensions will no longer be given out so easily,” he said.

“The contractors will have to bear the costs if they do not complete their work on time.”

After chairing a previous committee meeting on May 2, deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi gave local authorities two weeks to identify roads closed for construction or road works that should be reopened to ease traffic.

Zahid said the committee would also propose opening new lanes on main roads to ease congestion during peak hours.

Loke said that between June and August, DBKL will be reopening seven roads which were closed for construction or road works.

He also said contra-flow lanes will be implemented in several locations in Kuala Lumpur from July 3 to ease congestion.

A contra-flow lane will be opened from the Sungai Besi toll plaza to the Besraya intersection, for a distance of 2.4km. It will be open to all private vehicles except motorcycles.

A contra-flow lane for public transport will be created from Ampang Point to Jalan Tun Razak.

Meanwhile, the existing contra-flow lane southbound from Jalan Maharajalela to Taman Connaught will be extended to evening peak hours over a 4km stretch.

The contra-flow lanes will be activated during peak hours from 6am to 9am and from 5pm to 7pm.

“These measures will not stop traffic congestion entirely, but they will help to alleviate it,” Loke said.

“With the number of vehicles increasing daily, congestion will not be solved unless we have a drastic shift in policy, and we’re not there yet.”