Gua Musang Highway
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The Federal Route 8, also known as the Kuala Lumpur–Kota Bharu Highway ( Malay: ''Jalan Kuala Lumpur–Kota Bharu''), is a 402.7-km federal highway in
Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
. It connects
Bentong Bentong, the seat of Bentong District, is a town located in western Pahang, Malaysia, at the border with the state of Selangor in the west and the state of Negeri Sembilan in the south. Government Bentong Municipal Council () is the local au ...
in the south to
Kota Bharu Kota Bharu ( Kelantanese: ''Koto Baghu''), colloquially referred to as KB, is a town in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is situated in the northeastern part of Peninsular Malaysia and lies near the mout ...
in the north. The highway had two parts - Kota Bharu–Kuala Krai Road (Malay: ''Jalan Kota Bharu–Kuala Krai'') and Bentong–Kuala Lipis Road (Malay: ''Jalan Bentong–Kuala Lipis'') until the completion of the missing link from Kuala Krai to Kuala Lipis, causing the entire FT8 highway to take 99 years to be completed.


Route background

The Kilometre Zero of the Federal Route 8 starts at its interchange with the
Kuala Lumpur–Karak Expressway The Kuala Lumpur–Karak Expressway is a interstate controlled-access highway in Peninsular Malaysia. It runs between the town of Gombak (town), Gombak in Selangor to the southwest and Karak, Pahang, Karak in Pahang to the northeast. The expres ...
E8 (Exit 810) at Bentong, Pahang. Together with the Federal Route 9, it runs along the eastern foothills of the
Titiwangsa Range The Titiwangsa Mountains (Malay language, Malay: ''Banjaran Titiwangsa'', ), also known as ''Banjaran Besar'' (lit. 'main range') by locals, is the chain of mountains that forms the backbone of the Malay Peninsula. The northern section of the r ...
from its southern terminus to Raub. Then, the highways runs further from the Titiwangsa towards
Kuala Lipis Kuala Lipis (Pahang Malay: ''Kole Lepeh'') is a mukim and capital of Lipis District, Pahang, Malaysia with a population of 20,000. History Kuala Lipis was a gold-mining centre before the British Empire, British arrived in 1887. In 1898, it bec ...
, and then runs along the western foothills of the Tahan Range towards Kuala Krai. Finally, the Federal Route 8 runs along the eastern bank of the
Kelantan River The Kelantan River ( Malay: ) ( Jawi: سوڠاي كلنتن; Kelantanese dialect: ''Sunga Kelate'') is a major river in Kelantan, Malaysia. Its drainage basin is about 11,900 km² in northeast Malaysia, including part of the Taman Negara, ...
to its northern terminus at
Kota Bharu Kota Bharu ( Kelantanese: ''Koto Baghu''), colloquially referred to as KB, is a town in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is situated in the northeastern part of Peninsular Malaysia and lies near the mout ...
. The FT8 highway is notorious for its severe traffic congestion, especially along the Kota Bharu–Kuala Krai section. The traffic congestion becomes apparent during festive seasons, with the recorded journey time from
Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur (KL), officially the Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur, is the capital city and a Federal Territories of Malaysia, federal territory of Malaysia. It is the largest city in the country, covering an area of with a census population ...
to
Kota Bharu Kota Bharu ( Kelantanese: ''Koto Baghu''), colloquially referred to as KB, is a town in Malaysia that serves as the state capital and royal seat of Kelantan. It is situated in the northeastern part of Peninsular Malaysia and lies near the mout ...
exceeding 16 hours during the 2014 Hari Raya Aidilfitri festive season.


History

A portion of the Federal Route 8 was a part of the 80-mile Kuala Kubu–Kuala Lipis Road, the earliest trunk road in Pahang, which was constructed by the
Public Works Department This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...
in 1887. The Kuala Kubu–Kuala Lipis Road connected
Kuala Kubu Bharu Kuala Kubu Bharu (also spelt Kuala Kubu Baru, Kuala Kubu Bahru or Kuala Kubu Baharu; abbreviated to KKB), is the district capital of Hulu Selangor District, Selangor, Malaysia. It is located north of Kuala Lumpur and from Shah Alam, the stat ...
in Selangor and
Kuala Lipis Kuala Lipis (Pahang Malay: ''Kole Lepeh'') is a mukim and capital of Lipis District, Pahang, Malaysia with a population of 20,000. History Kuala Lipis was a gold-mining centre before the British Empire, British arrived in 1887. In 1898, it bec ...
in Pahang. Later, a section from Teranum to Bentong was constructed in 1915. At the same time, the Kota Bharu–Kuala Krai Road was constructed, together with the Kuala Terengganu–Kuantan Road FT3. The original FT8 section from Raub to Bentong via Teranum was later bypassed by a more straight
super two A two-lane expressway or two-lane freeway is an expressway or freeway with only one lane in each direction, and usually no median barrier. It may be built that way because of constraints, or may be intended for expansion once traffic volumes ri ...
highway in 1958 in conjunction of the opening of FELDA Lurah Bilut, causing the old, winding section to be re-gazetted as the Federal Route 218. However, Bentong–Kuala Lipis Road FT8 and Kota Bharu–Kuala Krai Road FT8 were not extended, creating a 219-km missing link from Kuala Lipis to Kuala Krai. The missing link was only constructed in 1981. The Kuala Krai–Gua Musang Highway FT8 was completed first in August 1983, followed by the Kuala Lipis–Gua Musang Highway FT8 in 1986.


Upgrading into the Central Spine Road

Some parts of the Federal Route 8 can be seen to have constructions which are an upgrading progress of the route. The highway construction can be seen after Merapoh which is at Bukit Tujuh. The highway will take a new route (
Central Spine Road Lingkaran Tengah Utama Expressway, previously known as Central Spine Road (CSR) or Kuala Krai–Kuala Pilah Highway, Federal Route 34, is a new toll-free Controlled-access highway, expressway under construction in the center of Peninsular Ma ...
) at Chegar Perah thus reducing the accident risks involving animals and sharp corners. Now, some parts of the old route at Chegar Perah had been demolished and motorist have been redirected into the
Central Spine Road Lingkaran Tengah Utama Expressway, previously known as Central Spine Road (CSR) or Kuala Krai–Kuala Pilah Highway, Federal Route 34, is a new toll-free Controlled-access highway, expressway under construction in the center of Peninsular Ma ...
for a few kilometres before being redirected back to the Federal Route 8 just before Bukit Tujuh (Seven Hills).


Junctions and towns (south–north)

The following is a list of junctions of Route 8, and the towns (in bold with capital letters) that the intersections serve.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malaysia Federal Route 008 Highways in Malaysia
008 008, OO8, O08, or 0O8 may refer to: * "008", a fictional 00 Agent In Ian Fleming's James Bond novels and the derived films, the 00 Section of MI6 is considered the secret service's elite. A 00 (pronounced "Double O") is a field agent who ho ...