PRESENT POINT POWER

TM & PLUS Cashing in Rat Year 2008 - SMS 33626 30 Sens Ang Pows for PLUS CNY Mobile Highway Alert Travel; TM Voice Mail -10 Rings; Retrieve– 4sen/min

ABOVE & BELOW: The slowdown and jams on the expressway are inevitable. The volume of traffic has increased year by year and it is inevitable the queue will be longer for a given volume of vehicles to move over certain stretches and the www will be from Rawang to Tanjung Malim (45 km), even the roadworks have stopped the lanes have been narrowed.

Alternative Route(s) for Tanjung Malim-Rawang Stretch - Tanjung Malim Toll Plaza – Kalumpang – Kerling – Kuala Kubu Baru – Rasa – Batang Kali – Serendah – Rawang – Rawang Toll Plaza.= = == == == = == == = == == == = == == = ==

The rates on four major highways including the closed-toll portion of the North-South Expressway (NSE) were maintained and PLUS was adequately compensated by the Government. But the greedy PLUS is also joining in the Rat Race in the Chinese year of the Rat for some SMS Ang Pows from the 1.3 Million motorists (per day) using the PLUS N-S highway over the festive period days 6,7,9,10 & 11 Feb 08. The mobile alert is targeted at the high volume routes (see table Below). If you are traveling say from KL to Ipoh; Sending ON KLIP 33626 would subscribe you into the alert. And what do you get for 30sen? Another scam perhaps.

See example, “Accident at KM250” and what can you do? You will still be stuck in a crawling highway. Where is the CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) of PLUS Expressway? On all the tolled highways, motorists are already paying and when they are jams and slowdown, they should have provided the free service announcements through the many FM stations that most motorists are tuned into. But instead they are “making hay, while the sunshine” on 6, 7, 10 & 11 Feb. Where is their expected code of conduct -the practice of good corporate governance and socially responsible once a year? Is this what the MD meant “PLUS Expressways is proactive and committed to helping users travel more safely, comfortably and effectively, especially during peak periods,” MD, Noorizah (BELOW) Hj Abd Hamid. A l ot of bull here, proactive to keep their coffers fuller.

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TM Net Charging Voice Mail Retrieval 4 sen/minute Since beginning of Year
The FREE voicemail service was first introduced in 16^th Sept 2006 with much fanfare. Each subscriber was informed about the s FREE service by way of individual letetrr (see BELOW) .

But it lasted over a year, Telecom Malaysia has stealthily withdraw the free service (without ANY proper announcement) and charging ALL fixed lines users a flat rate of 4 sens per minute for retrieval. This may be a small amount, but considering the millions of subscribers, this TM Rat in 2008 will be laughing all the way to the bank. This voicemail is activated automatically after only “10 rings” and it will increase your monthly bill. It will also increase the charges from the caller as if the caller were to redial again and again; the repeated calls will be metered and charged as individual calls after “10 rings” For your own sake, opt out for this Voicemail Mail service for peace of mind.
You can opt out for this service by dialing 100 and asking to unsubsrcibe. But it seems not so easy, there were reports that even going to the Kedai Telecom and filling up a form and submitting it, the service is automatically put back. Going to their website www.tm.com.my is absolutely useless as there is not a squeak on it on voicemail in the fixed line category.

The CLIP (Call Line Identification Person) charge is also not properly shown as a separate optional charge. It is lump up as monthly charges and you can save RM3 to opt out again if you are not interested who is calling.
And the TM Group is so proud of “its long-standing tradition of contributing to society and the nation. Growing from a government department in the early 1940s to where it is today as a major corporate heavyweight on Bursa Malaysia, the TM Group has never shirked from its social responsibilities”

If it has so much CSR as claimed in its website, it should bare all and give the optional details in its bills and have the information on the website

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PLUS ready for the exodus of 1.3m vehicles

by Joshua Foong
KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 4, 2008): An estimated 1.3 million vehicles are expected to use the North-South Expressway in the Chinese New Year exodus, representing an increase of up to 30% over the average traffic volume. Highway concessionnaire Projek Lebuhraya Utara-Selatan Bhd (PLUS) announced today several measures to make travel smoother. They are:
> An additional third lane (both directions) has been opened for traffic between Seremban and Ayer Keroh, and stretches between Slim River and Rawang.

ABOVE & BELOW: Contra flow between Km392.8 and Km378.5 from Tanjung Malim to Slim River (north-bound) from 10am today to midnight Thursday (Feb 7).

Those exiting at Behrang are advised not to use the contra lane.
> Expressway upgrading works, notably the stretch from Slim River to Rawang, will be suspended tomorrow until Feb 11.
PLUS managing director Noorizah Abd Hamid said holiday revellers are also advised to use the travel time advisory (TTA) issued by PLUS to plan their travel time to help prevent traffic jams.
About 60% of highway users followed the recommended schedule during Hari Raya and Deepavali seasons last year and traffic was reportedly smooth.
Detailed information on the advisory is available on the website
http://www.plus.com.my

ABOVE & BELOW: whether you follow these advisory leaving times or not, during ANY festive periods, tightened your seat belts, bring some drinks and food along and brace the family for an "extended journey"
To help road users, major radio stations will relay important information. Those who need traffic information on demand can text PLUS Mobile Alerts. Type ON To help road users, major radio stations will relay important information. Those who need traffic information on demand can text PLUS Mobile Alerts. Type ON and send to 33626.
The journey codes for the PLUS Mobile Alerts are:
1. KL to Ipoh – KLIP
2. KL to Ayer Keroh – KLAK
3. Ipoh to KL – IPKL
4. Ipoh to North – IPNO
5. North to Ipoh – NOIP
6. Ayer Keroh to KL – AKKL
7. Ayer Keroh to South – AKSO
8. South to Ayer Keroh – SOAK

For information, call PLUSline at 1-800-88-0000.

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Tuesday February 5, 2008; PLUS: Follow time advisory
By JAYAGANDI JAYARAJ, STAR

KUALA LUMPUR: North-South Expressway users are advised to follow the Travel Time Advisory (TTA) during the Chinese New Year festive season starting today. The advisory by the Plus Expressways Bhd (PLUS), in collaboration with the Malaysian Highway Authority (MHA), Royal Malaysian Police, AMP Radio Networks and Radio 24, is an effort to ensure safer and convenient highway travel.

PLUS managing director Noorizah (ABOVE) Abd Hamid said the advisory was to encourage Klang Valley residents to travel at advised times for both outward and return journeys in order to reduce congestion during peak hours. “The advisory eases congestion by staggering traffic at different times instead of choking the highways with vehicles. This can reduce the number of accidents and provide smooth traffic.

“Based on findings from the last Hari Raya holidays, the advisory received positive and encouraging response from the public as about 60% of highway users followed the recommendation and traffic was generally smooth without major congestions. “The advisory will also be advertised in all major newspapers,” she said, adding that an estimated 1.3 million vehicles per day would be travelling on the highway on Feb 5, 6 and 10.

PLUS is also gearing up to facilitate better traffic flow by enhancing its services, including the provision of additional lanes on the highway and toll plazas. PLUS will also deploy aerial traffic surveillance, emergency response teams at strategic locations, more PLUSRonda teams and extended customer service centres, and Touch n' Go top-up lanes. Noorizah said for southbound travellers, the third lane was open for traffic between Seremban and Ayer Keroh while for northbound traffic, the third lanes between Slim River and Rawang will be open.

To facilitate smoother northbound traffic flow between Tangjung Malim and Slim River, additional lanes will be provided via a contra-flow between the 392.8th and 378.5th kilometres, from 10am on Feb 5 to midnight on Feb 7. “We want highway users to travel more safely, comfortably and effectively, especially during peak periods,” she said yesterday.

All facilities at rest and service areas, and lay-bys are open 24-hours a day. Additionally, cranes and tow trucks will be provided at certain locations to enhance response time in cases of accidents. With the PLUS Mobile Alert SMS Service (see chart), motorists can also plan their journey through the latest updates.