KOTA KINABALU: Traffic flow along Mile 96, Kota Kinabalu-Sandakan Road is back to normal, with vehicles moving cautiously on a temporary single lane after a major landslide cut off communication between the east and west coasts on Sunday.
As of yesterday, workers from the Public Works Department (PDW) had been working round the clock to clear off debris as tons of earth and rocks were dumped along the 70-meter stretch of the road.
“At the moment, there is no serious traffic jam as we managed to create a temporary single lane to allow vehicles to pass through the affected stretch slowly from one end at a time,” PWD director Datuk John Anthony told The Borneo Post yesterday.
PWD workers have been deployed to the affected areas since the landslide occurred to control the flow of traffic and to clear off all debris.
According to Anthony, it will take some time to remove the earth and rocks.
“It is still raining there which makes it difficult for our workers to clear the road as earth was still falling from the hill. However, we will continue to monitor the situation,” he said, adding that if the weather permits, it would only take three to four hours to clear the area.
The landslide, which occurred in the wee hours on Sunday following continuous heavy rain since Saturday, had caused hundreds of motorists to be held up for more than 13 hours and causing a massive traffic jam that stretched several kilometers.
An alternative road between Celyn Resort and Zen Garden was used by small vehicles while larger vehicles such as lorries and buses used the temporary lane.