Signposting in Malaysia still sucks

We were with our old friends from Leeds and promised to send them to Tune Hotel, near LCCT. Since we would be around KL, we were all invited to my son's second reception for his friends at the Italian restaurant Ciao. Many years ago, I had been to their old premises next to RHB building on Jalan Tun Razak, for lunch with one of their owners, James Khor who happened to be our lawyer for our housing projects and an eviction case. But I had never been to their new premises near the road entrance to Kg. Pandan. So I had to rely on Beng's description of how to get there. What I heard was 'after the round about...' which turned out to be the beginning of Maju Expressway, the way we came from Tune Hotel, after much trouble because of poor signposting. He had also suggested that we take that way to KLIA when sending off Cheng who was MC, after the dinner (her luggage was already in the car). The way from there to LCCT to drop off Stuart and Sarah, and then to KLIA, we had no problems with the signposting.

I challenge any one without (Satnav), who used the Maju Expressway (E20) for the first time, from LCCT to get to Jalan Tun Razak in KL, who can claim that he or she could rely on the signposting along the way. I was not alone. I even asked Stuart and Sarah for their opinions when faced with ambiguous and misleading road signs. Right from the beginning near LCCT, there were signs for Maju Expressway and Jalan Tun Razak! Yet when we came to a place where there were signs to Cyberjaya or Putrajaya, there were no mention. So it was, with Murphy's Law at work, we chose Putrajaya and ended up in Putrajaya of course! Here, for aesthetic rather than convenience, there were practically no U-turns and if you made a mistake, it meant going round the humongous roundabout! Anyway, relying on signs to KL, we ended up going into one Ayer Hitam tolled expressway. It was humiliating, while in the presence of foreign visitors that we Malaysians had to ask our way a few times to get back to KL!

I managed to get back to KL and used my past knowledge of old routes within to get through Jalan Raja Chulan, past Pavilion, towards Jalan Tun Razak and then towards Kg. Pandan roundabout. But just a mistake past the first turn into Kg. Pandan and into Maju Expressway, we were told at the toll plaza that there was no U-turn until Bukit Jalil! Even at that exchange, it was not a simple 'turn left to join a little roundabout and get back in the direction you came from'. It was a turn to get to a sports stadium and we had to rely on a guess to get it right, feeling doubtful for a few kilometres before we could tell whether it was a correct one!

We arrived around 9 pm, having missed Cheng's presentation and eating cold foods. I happened to be the host's father and I arrived late after driving from BG to KL, PJ to LCCT andback to KL, went round in circles in some unknown roads in the dark before I could find it.

The day before too I had been driving most times, taking Stuart and Sarah round, to Kuala Sepetang for a visit to a big charcoal factory and then dinner. We continued our chat after dinner (before the restaurant got crowded) to while away time for a visit to Kg. Dew to watch fireflies. I shall be writing on those two places later.

I forgot to mention Stuart told us about a Dutch lady they met while in Pulau Perhentian. She was in KLIA looking for LCCT. Nobody she asked could tell her how to get there and she got the impression it was just next to KLIA! She missed her flight as a result. On our way from PJ to Tune Hotel near LCCT, I pointed out to him that while on the common route to KLIA/LCCT, not even one sign showing KLIA has LCCT next to or below it. Had there been proper signs, they would certainly reassure travellers that they are on the right track. Even the first sign showing the exit from the highway to LCCT was in Bahasa style: 'Terminal LCC', why not the better known 'LCCT'?
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