Children were unable to attend school while many were late for work this morning as remedial works along the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) in northern Klang Valley exceeded the set working hours.

Two months ago, Works Minister S Samy Vellu promised the public that major remedial works requiring the closure of roads would only take place between 11pm to 5am.

However, several residents living near the MRR2 told malaysiakini that remedial works only finished slightly after 10am today.

According to Kepong MP Dr Tan Seng Giaw, road blocks were placed at the entrance of a flyover near Desa Complex causing horrific traffic jams.

"At the best of times, traffic situation is already bad, due to the closure of several flyovers along the MRR2 for repairs. But today, I received tremendous amounts of complaints," he said.

Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR)Youth deputy chief S Manikavasagam, who lives in Kepong, reported that roads were also blocked near the Sri Damansara and Bandar Manjalela portions of the MRR2.

Unforseen circumstances

According to Public Works Department (JKR) Director-General Prof Ir Dr Wahid Omar, repair works on pillar 30 began at 10pm and unspecified roads were scheduled to be blocked until 6am today.

However, due to unforseen circumstances, remedial works were unable to be completed on time. Wahid claimed that the roads were open to public at about 8.15am.

He advised motorist to avoid the MRR2 between 8pm to 6am daily until repairs were completed.

"JKR has taken all steps capable to reduce traffic jam," he was quoted as saying by Bernama .

A portion of the MRR2 was ordered to be closed by Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi early Febuary to facilitate repair works, causing traffic chaos in the area.

The same portion of the MRR2 was closed for three months from Aug 9, 2004 after cracks appeared on 31 out of the 33 support beams. Following this, four of the six lanes were open to traffic.