View Full Version : SMART Tunnel:Closed for Business!
SMART which is a short form of Stormwater Management And Road Tunnel. The project is a 9.7 km single-bore tunnel to divert Ampang river waters which cause stormwater overflow during the rain season. The tunnel will head for south of Kuala Lumpur following Jalan U Thant, Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan Chan Sow Lin and the Seremban Highway parallel to the old military airport. In the central part of the tunnel is a 2.4 km-long stretch with a dual purpose for flood mitigation and road traffic on 2 levels. The third level will accomodate utilities, ventilation, etc. The remaining 1.7 km for double function is part of the 4.3 km north tunnel section. Two junction boxes are at either end of the dual-purpose 2.4 km stretch with 2 ventilation shafts in between. If the water level on the first level of the tunnel are in critical condition the double-decker road will be cleared by 10 minutes to allow full use of the tunnel for flood mitigation. The project will be ready by 2006 with targetted 33 months of construction.
The Star: 22nd Sept. 2004
Peremba Construction Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of PECD Bhd, has been awarded a RM528.88mil contract for Kuala Lumpur Flood Mitigation (KLFM) project package B, superseding the Batu Pond (Gombak) Advance Works Interim Letter of Award of RM80mil.
The contract would involve the design, construction and completion of Batu/Jinjang ponds and the related flood diversion works, PECD managing director Ramli Ahmad said in a statement in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.
He said the project, awarded by the Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID), was a key component in the city’s socio-economic development.
Ramli said the project was envisaged to mitigate the 100-year average recurrence interval (ARI) floods in Kuala Lumpur city.
He said the project comprised two important components, the first of which was the upgrading of the present Gombak diversion scheme to channel more flood flows from Sungai Gombak to Batu Pond.
This would involve the construction of a barrage, diversion channel to divert additional flood flow, excavation and enlargement of Batu Pond to increase its storage capacity to 4.5 million cu m, and construction of other associated works such as additional inlets, trash screens, outlet gates, ogee weirs and floodwalls.
It includes the development of a new Keroh diversion scheme to channel flood flow from Sungai Keroh to Jinjang Ponds.
Ramli said the project aimed at diverting storm water from entering the city centre by creating two holding basins, namely the Batu and Jinjang retention ponds, linked by the two diversion channels, namely the Keroh and Gombak channels, and releasing it well after the storm event.
KLFM package B will complement package A (not undertaken by Peremba) to form a total solution to the flood problem in Kuala Lumpur.
The KLFM project is expected to be completed by the end of May 2007. – Bernama
* Package A includes the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART)
Smart Tunnel Website (http://www.smarttunnel.com.my)
There's an interesting road project in KL called SMART (Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel) where the road tunnel will have dual function as a drainage channel to divert flood water.
Does anyone have more info on this project? Would be interesting to see how it works in real life.
Here's the article from the engineer's website:
http://www.mottmac.com/html/05/news.cfm?fuseaction=story&ID=648
"The first breakthrough by one of two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) being used on SMART – Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel – in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia took place on 11 December 2004. The 13.2m diameter mixshield slurry TBM – one of the world’s largest – completed the 737m drive in 24 weeks. Mott MacDonald and SSP Consultants of Malaysia are jointly supervising construction of the tunnel by two TBMs working in opposite directions from the middle of the tunnel alignment.
SMART will divert floodwaters away from the confluence of two major rivers running through Kuala Lumpur while its central 3 km section will double up as a two-deck motorway to relieve traffic congestion in the city centre. The 9.7 km long 11.8m internal diameter tunnel will work on a three mode system. Mode one will operate under normal conditions or when rainfall is low such that no water needs to be diverted into the tunnel. Moderate storms will activate mode two. This will divert floodwater into a bypass tunnel in the lower section of the motorway tunnel which will remain open to traffic. During the once or twice yearly heavy storms, a switch will be made to mode three when the tunnel will be closed and the full tunnel section with a combined capacity of 3 million cubic metres will become available to divert the dramatically increased flows.
Mott MacDonald and SSP were appointed by the MMC-Gamuda JV, who are constructing the project, to provide detailed design services to take the project from concept through to construction. Mott MacDonald and SSP Consultants are now supervising construction on behalf of the MMC-Gamuda JV.
The highway section of the tunnel, which will operate under a 40 year concession between Government and MMC-Gamuda JV, is due for completion in 2005 and the bypass tunnel and associated works a year later."
Source: Mott MacDonald
I already created a thread about it 2 years ago...
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showthread.php?t=22
Visit www.smarttunnel.com.my for more info!
Thanks Ijud. This is an interesting project indeed :)
May 08, 2007 00:25 AM
Smart Tunnel Opens On May 14
KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 (Bernama) -- The Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART) will be open to traffic at 1.30pm on May 14, said Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu.
He said the six-kilometre road tunnel which was originally scheduled to be opened on April 9 had to be postponed as the bottom part of the tunnel had not been fully completed.
"The bottom part of the tunnel to channel stormwater was not ready, that's why we delayed the opening," he told reporters before opening the Federal Territory MIC Convention, here today.
The RM1.9 billion project, which began in January 2003, comprises a 10km stormwater tunnel and a double-deck motorway tunnel.
Construction work on the tunnel was carried out by Syarikat Mengurus Air Banjir dan Terowong Sdn Bhd, a joint-venture between Gamuda and MMC.
Samy Vellu, who is also the MIC president, said the tunnel linked Jalan Tun Razak and Jalan Davis to the Kuala Lumpur-Seremban Highway, near the Royal Malaysian Air Force base.
This shortens the time taken by road users going to the city centre to between five and 10 minutes only compared with more than 40 minutes during peak hours.
Asked about the toll rate to be charged, he said: "I can't disclose now because I need approval from the cabinet."
The minister said the toll rate would be announced one month after the SMART tunnel was opened to the public.
-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=260630
Details about the SMART project in this thread (http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showthread.php?t=1038t) from 2005.
The minister said the toll rate would be announced one month after the SMART tunnel was opened to the public.Until then, you have to pay toll without actually knowing how much! :p
[Works Minister]Samy Vellu also said the toll rate for the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) had not been fixed but its opening had been brought forward from 1.30pm to 8am on May 14.
Hopefully, it's free for the first month!?
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/state_news/news.php?id=260847&cat=ct
June 11, 2007 15:10 PM
Smart Tunnel Toll Fixed At RM2
KUALA LUMPUR, June 11 (Bernama) -- The toll rate for the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART), now renamed Bestari Tunnel, will be RM2 one way effective Thursday midnight, Works Minister Datuk Seri S. Samy Vellu announced Monday.
It was earlier reported that toll collection would start at midnight on Friday.
Samy Vellu said that only cars and taxis were allowed to use the road tunnel due to its limited height clearance.
"Why RM2? It's because the developer has spent RM640 million to build a four-kilometre road inside the tunnel. The surcharge imposed for similar facilities in other countries like Hong Kong is much higher," he told reporters after opening a workshop on government delivery system at the ministry here.
Samy Vellu said the road tunnel provided an alternative for speedier travel.
Samy Vellu said the public should not blame SMART for the flash floods which hit several areas in Kuala Lumpur Sunday as, apart from the motorway, the RM1.9 billion infrastructure was not fully operational.
The minister said the government would need to spend billions of ringgit to deepen rivers in the city to overcome the flood woes.
He said the floodwaters also caused damage to the electrical system, lift, hall and parking area at the MIC headquarters here. Losses were estimated at RM800,000.
The SMART project is meant to divert rain water away from the city centre to prevent flash floods and ease traffic congestion, especially for those coming into the city from the south.
Drainage and Irrigation Department director-general Datuk Keizrul Abdullah recently said the stormwater management portion of the SMART project would only be fully operational in July following the completion of water retention ponds in Kampung Berembang and Taman Desa.
-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/
June 12, 2007 15:23 PM
SMART To Be Completed One Week Ahead Of Schedule
KUALA LUMPUR, June 12 (Bernama) -- The floodwater channel of the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART) will be ready one week ahead of its scheduled June 30 completion date as the authorities scramble to overcome flash floods in the Klang Valley.
Irrigation and Drainage Department (DID) director-general Datuk Keizrul Abdullah said the department would speed up all flood mitigation measures to deal with the problem.
For SMART's floodwater channel, several gates are being installed while all security features would be completed before the tunnel is commissioned, he said in a statement Tuesday.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi yesterday expressed dismay over the inadequate flood control measures in the city during a briefing at the Kuala Lumpur City Hall on the flood which threw the capital into chaos on Sunday night.
He asked the DID to speed up flood mitigation efforts, including the RM1.93 billion SMART dual-purpose tunnel.
Keizrul said DID was carrying out several projects to prevent floods in the federal capital under the Klang River Valley Flood Mitigation Programme, including the construction of the Batu Dam and raising the height of the Klang Gates Dam by three metres.
He said the department was also installing pump systems in low-lying areas.
"DID is also deepening and widening the Klang River, Damansara River, Kerayong River and Penchala River besides strengthening the river embankment in Kebun Bunga, Shah Alam.
"We'll also construct flood bypasses and upgrade flood forecast and alert system. We've started sending flood warnings to Shah Alam residents by SMS (short messaging service)," he added.
A four-hour downpour on Sunday left many places in Kuala Lumpur under water. Among the worst affected areas were Kampung Baru, Sentul, Jinjang Selatan, Segambut, Jalan Masjid India, Jalan Perak, Jalan Pinang, Jalan Tun Razak, Jalan P Ramlee and Jalan Kolam Air, Setapak.
Clean up operations are now underway to clear the streets of rubbish and items destroyed by floodwaters.
-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=266955
SMART's Floodwater Tunnel Starts Operations
KUALA LUMPUR, June 23 (Bernama) -- The SMART floodwater tunnel is fully operational starting from today, one week ahead of schedule.
Announcing this, Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) Director-General Datuk Paduka Keizrul Abdullah said the tunnel was expected to be able to reduce the level of floodwater in the city by 45 per cent.
However, it would depend on the rainfall on the Sungai Klang side, he told reporters after a forum on flood management in the Klang Valley/Kuala Lumpur at Universiti Malaya here.
He said SMART (the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel) would divert 90 per cent of Sungai Klang flood discharges into the Kampung Berembang holding basin and then to the storage pond in Taman Desa.
"Basically, we are controlling the quantity of flood discharges from Sungai Klang especially near Masjid Jamek," he said.
One should bear in mind that 55 per cent of the floodwater in the city was due to the overflowing of Sungai Gombak and Sungai Batu that cut across the Klang Valley, Keizrul said.
He said SMART was part of the Flood Mitigation Project in Kuala Lumpur approved by the government in 2002 which also included the construction of holding ponds in Batu and Jinjang.
The two ponds were expected to be completed by yearend and they would reduce flood discharges from Sungai Batu and Sungai Gombak in the city, he said.
Other measures currently being taken were the widening of Sungai Kerayong and Sungai Damansara and the construction of the Sri Johor holding pond.
Keizrul said floods in the city caused by the overflowing of rivers would be overcomed completely when all the components in the Flood Mitigation Project were completed in early 2008.
-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=269208
It's also called the Bestari Tunnel by some accounts:
2007/08/22
Tunnel ‘will ensure’ KL is flood free
By : David Yeow and Azira Shaharuddin
http://www.nst.com.my/Wednesday/National/20070822073306/insidepix1
[Photo: New Straits Times - A video grab from the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel’s (SMART) security camera which shows how the water is contained.]A video grab from the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel’s (Smart) security camera which shows how the water is contained.
KUALA LUMPUR: There should be no more flash floods in Kuala Lumpur.
This was the assurance given by Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) director-general Datuk Paduka Keizrul Abdullah at a briefing on the result of a test of the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) system at its Motorway Control Centre yesterday.
The tunnel, which cost about RM2 billion and took four years to build, is having its first trial run.
"The flood test was a success. If the tunnel had been ready on June 10, the floods in Kuala Lumpur would not have happened," Keizrul said.
He explained that the June 10 flood was caused by an overflow of two million cubic metres of water from the Klang river.
"The tunnel plus its two storage reservoirs can take up to three million cubic metres of water."
The trial run, which started on Sunday, saw one million cubic metres of water poured and sealed into the three levels of the tunnel for 1½ days.
"It was 99.5 per cent perfect," Keizrul said. "We never doubted the ability of the tunnel and it was good to be able to finally prove it."
The trial run, which is expected to wrap up before Friday, included tests on the water flow to make sure that the floodgates were functioning and the tunnel was water tight.
Keizrul said there were two problems: One of the 260 surveillance cameras in the tunnel was not functioning and water was seeping through one of the emergency escape doors.
He added that these were minor problems.
Keizrul said an additional basin capable of holding four million cubic metres of water would be completed in Kampung Batu by the end of this month and another basin capable of containing two million cubic metres of water would be built near the Jinjang river by year end.
Upon completion, the tunnel would be able to divert nine million cubic metres of flood water.
http://www.malaxi.com/kuala_lumpur/images/SMART.jpg
[Maps & Pictures: http://www.malaxi.com]
http://www.malaxi.com/kuala_lumpur/images/water_storing_motorway.jpg
The Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART) system .....
..... will divert excess floodwater from the Ampang and Klang rivers to the Kampung Berembang holding pond in Ampang, a bypass tunnel and a storage reservoir in Taman Desa.
The water will then be released back downstream of the Klang and Kerayong rivers.
.....
http://www.malaxi.com/kuala_lumpur/smart_map.html
Good to see some emphasis on rescue drills in such a long tunnel network!:
October 05, 2007 19:58 PM
SMART Tunnel To Seremban Closes For Three Hours On Sunday
KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 5 (Bernama) -- The upper deck of the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART) Project heading to Seremban will be closed for three hours from 8am on Sunday for a fire drill.
The fire drill will involve the Fire and Rescue Department and the relevant government agencies.
SMART Communications Officer Wan Azhar Wan Yeop, when contacted, said it would be the third fire drill to be held since the tunnel was opened to the public.
"The training is a continuous process and made at the request of the Fire and Rescue Department to expose the relevant quarters, including the SMART staff on safety measures to be taken," he added.
Meanwhile, motorists using the the Middle Ring Road 2 (MRR2) on both directions will be diverted to an alternative route as they approach the Glaxo Smith Kline factory and Taman Hillview, Ulu Kelang on Monday due to construction work of the Duta-Ulu Klang Expressway (Duke) project.
The Konsortium Lebuhraya Utara-Timur Kuala Lumpur Sdn Bhd (Kesturi), in a statement today said the temporary diversion would start at 12.01am until 5am.
Signboards to inform motorists of the diversion will be placed at several locations along MMR2.
Kesturi advised motorists to be extra cautious and follow the signboards when in the area.
-- BERNAMA
Non-specific link:
http://www.bernama.com.my/
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/Frontpage/2084488/Article/index_html
They say that this is only the second time it has been necessary to close the combined road /stormdrain tunnel since its opening earlier this year:
2007/11/15
Tunnel closure prevents floods in KL
http://www.nst.com.my/Thursday/Frontpage/2084488/insidepix1
[Traffic was reduced to a came to a heavy crawl at the exit of Sungai Besi heading to the city centre due to the closing of Smart tunnel yesterday. - NST picture by Muhaizan Yahya]
KUALA LUMPUR: The closure of the RM2 billion Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) at Sungai Besi beginning 6pm on Tuesday saved the city from being flooded.
Drainage and Irrigation Department's Kuala Lumpur Flood Mitigation Project director K.J. Abraham said water was filling the tunnel at 300 cubic metres per second at 6pm on Tuesday.
This forced the department to issue a closure order for the tunnel. Due to the heavy rain in the city, the water, if not diverted out, would have resulted in Dataran Merdeka being under water.
"We directed a lot of the water through the tunnel. We are still waiting for the de-watering process as it takes time," Abraham told the New Straits Times.
Traffic at the Sungai Besi area nearly came to a standstill yesterday morning as motorists were not aware that the tunnel was still closed.
Abraham said the department would normally issue a closure order to Smart, a joint project by MMC Corporation Bhd and Gamuda Bhd, when the water flows into the tunnel at 150 cubic metres per second.
The tunnel will be re-opened once the situation is under control.
"There are two things to consider before re-opening the tunnel. First, we need to wait for the de-watering process to take place.
"Secondly, we have to monitor the weather forecast to avoid a second closure," he said.
The RM2 billion tunnel, which was fully operational in June, is able to store three million cubic metres of flood water. The project's motorway component was opened to traffic on May 14.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department had forecast thunderstorms during the afternoons in the city centre until Friday.
As of 6pm yesterday, the tunnel remained closed. The public will be informed of the re-opening of the tunnel via the radio and other variable signage.
2007/11/16
SMART Tunnel opens
KUALA LUMPUR: The Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) has been opened this morninng after having remained closed for three days. The opening was relayed via the ITIS electronic signboard throughout the city.
Until 6pm yesterday, the water level reading in the tunnel was at 21m.
The 3km double-deck motorway was closed to traffic on Tuesday to divert water out of the city caused by heavy rain. This move prevented Dataran Merdeka from being inundated.
A spokesman said the tunnel had to be closed to traffic when water flow there hit 150 cubic metres per second. Automatic watertight gates opened to allow the water to pass through the tunnel to a holding basin in Kampung Berembang in Gombak to be released to a storage reservoir in Taman Desa.
This is the second time that the tunnel was completely closed to traffic. In September, the tunnel diverted more than 550,000 cubic metres of water from the city. It was re-opened to traffic after an eight-hour closure.
However, during a moderate storm, motorists can still use the upper tunnel as the flood water will be diverted through the lower tunnel.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Friday/National/2085361/Article/index_html
"Smart Tunnel" Documentary Created Local Skilled Workers
KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 17 (Bernama) -- The collaboration between the National Film Development Corporation (Finas) and the National Geographic Channel in producing the "Smart Tunnel" documentary had created local skilled workers capable of producing world-class documentaries.
"The collaboration had indirectly promoted and introduced the country's success in the construction technology," Culture, Arts and Heritage Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim said at the launch of the documentary here today.
His text of speech was read by Finas chairman Tan Sri Dr Jins Shamsudin.
The "Smart Tunnel" documentary followed collaboration for the "Becoming A King" documentary on the installation of the 13th Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin which was shown in Aug last year.
The documentary was shown from Aug 27-Sept 2 last year by Astro to 164 countries and reached about 250 million viewers.
The "Smart Tunnel" documentary costing US$200,000 showed the challenges in building the 9.7km tunnel aimed at resolving the flash flood problem in Kuala Lumpur.
Billed as the longest "stormwater tunnel" in South-east Asia and the second longest in Asia, the "Smart Tunnel" was built in 2003.
The motorway tunnel was opened to the public in May last year while the stormwater tunnel began operation a month later.
The one-hour documentary will be shown on Jan 25 at 10pm by Astro channel 553.
-- BERNAMA
http://www.bernama.com.my/
March 23, 2008 20:19 PM
Smart Tunnel Closed For Flood Operations
KUALA LUMPUR, March 23 (Bernama) -- The Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (SMART tunnel)) has been closed since 6pm last night for flood mitigation operations after the heavy downpour yesterday.
Syarikat Mengurus Air Banjir dan Terowong, the company managing the tunnel, in a statement today called on motorists to be patient and to extend their cooperation as well as paying attention to information on the closure that was put out via the Variable Message Sign and various media.
The public can call the SMART help line at 1-300-88-7188 for enquiries
-- BERNAMA
Non-specific link:
http://www.bernama.com.my/
See also previous post.
Tunnel closure spells nightmare for KL motorists
By : Shuhada Elis
http://www.nst.com.my/Tuesday/National/2195290/insidepix1
[Photo: NST - Traffic heading to the city centre slows to a crawl due to the closure of the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel.]
KUALA LUMPUR: Traffic jams are expected in the city until this weekend at the very least as the Stormwater Management and Road Tunnel (Smart) remains closed.
The tunnel, which connects the city centre near the Kampung Pandan roundabout to the KL-Seremban highway, has been closed since 6pm on Saturday to prevent flooding in the city.
Drainage and Irrigation Department's Kuala Lumpur Flood Mitigation Project director K.J. Abraham said 1.2 million cubic metres of water was diverted into the tunnel on Saturday due to heavy rain.
The RM2 billion tunnel, which became fully operational in June last year, is able to store three million cubic metres of flood water.
"We can't tell when the tunnel will be reopened," he said, adding that the DID would make announcements once the de-watering process was completed.
The Malaysian Meteorological Department had forecast thunderstorms in the city until the end of this week.
However, the inter-monsoonal season is expected to cause rain and strong winds until early May.
Yesterday, there was a traffic snarl in Sungai Besi for at least three hours as motorists were not aware of the tunnel's closure.
Motorists were allowed to make a U-turn after the toll plaza to avoid congestion.
A Smart spokesperson said the tunnel had to be closed on Saturday after a downpour of more than three hours.
The order to close the tunnel was issued by the DID at 5.15pm on Saturday .
This is the third time that the tunnel has been completely closed to traffic.
The dual purpose tunnel system acts as a bypass channel for floodwater at the confluence of the Klang and Ampang rivers into a storage reservoir in Taman Desa before being discharged into Sungai Kerayong.
A motorway tunnel is also integrated into the system to relieve traffic congestion at the main southern gateway to the city centre.
http://www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Tuesday/National/2195290/Article/index_html
See also thread on KL's DUMB Tunnel:
http://www.angkor.com/2bangkok/2bangkok/forum/showpost.php?p=20993&postcount=29
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