Trisha Shetty (Editor)

Malaysia Federal Route 59

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Existed:
  
1920s – present

Length
  
89.8 km

South end:
  
Tapah, Perak

North end:
  
Cameron Highlands, Pahang

Primary destinations:
  
Brinchang Tanah Rata Ringlet Kea Farm Tringkap Kuala Terla

Federal Route 59, or Jalan Tapah-Cameron Highlands, is a federal road in Perak and Pahang state, Malaysia. It was a main route to Cameron Highlands, Pahang from Tapah, Perak, before the second route Second East-West Highway was built in 2001.

Contents

Route background

The Kilometre Zero of the Federal Route 59 is located at Tapah, Perak, at its interchange with the Federal Route 1, the main trunk road of the central of Peninsular Malaysia. The Kilometre Zero monument is erected near Pos Malaysia post office at Jalan Stesen, Tapah.

History

The Cameron Highlands were explored in 1885 by William Cameron, a British surveyor. The trail used by Cameron remained unchanged until the 1920s when the British colonial Federated Malay States (FMS) government upgrades from trail road to a two-lane road.

Along Federal Route 59 there are many scenic views and tourist attractions. A massive traffic jams has occurred along this road during peak days, weekends and school holidays because there is a daily day-night market in Brinchang town and Kea Farm in which are available during weekends and the Malaysian school holidays, where many vegetable stalls and food stalls are set up.

Features

  • Narrow roads (JKR R3 (mountainous) standard for most section with maximum speed limit of 40 km/h)
  • Kuala Woh waterfall
  • Orang Asli villages
  • Kuala Woh and Lata Iskandar waterfalls
  • A daily day-night market at Brinchang town and Kea Farm
  • Connects to Federal Route 432 Jalan Gunung Brinchang, which is the highest road in Malaysia.
  • Tapah Interchange, a major interchange of the North-South Expressway Northern Route

    • At most sections, the Federal Route 59 was built under the JKR R5 road standard, allowing maximum speed limit of up to 90 km/h.

    Upgrading from Tapah to Cameron Highlands

    A multi-million ringgit project to widen and upgrade the road from Tapah to the highlands has been proposed. Motorists prefer to use the road from Simpang Pulai in Ipoh rather than the winding road up from Tapah. The 40 km stretch from Kampung Pahang here is regularly used by lorries carrying vegetables from the highlands to the rest of the country and Singapore. During peak days, the road is heavily congested. Motorists dread driving along the road, especially during the rainy season, as it is landslide-prone.

    References

    Malaysia Federal Route 59 Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA