Traffic was slow on major highways this afternoon as city dwellers began leaving the national capital for the long holiday in conjunction with the Chinese New Year.

A PLUSLine spokesperson when contacted said there was an increase in the volume of cars in several stretches on the North-South Expressway and the New Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE) particularly from Shah Alam to Damansara, Kota Damansara to Bukit Lanjan and from Kota Damansara to Subang.

"Heavy and slow moving traffic was also seen from Slim River to Sungkai, Perak, from the Sungai Besi toll plaza to Kuala Lumpur and before the Juru toll plaza in Penang heading to the south, and from north Senai to Kulai, Johor and towards Sungai Buloh.

"There was also heavy traffic from Nilai to Seremban but the movement was smooth," he said.

Meanwhile, the Malaysian Highway Authority reported on its website that there was heavy traffic from Sungai Dua toll plaza to Bertam and from Seberang Jaya to the Juru toll plaza.

- Bernama