Most Malaysia road signs are pictures, so a no-entry sign or a speed limit reads much the same as it does at home. The words are where visitors get stuck. Signs are in Bahasa Malaysia, with English added mainly around airports, railway stations, border checkpoints and tourist spots. The colours tell you a lot before you read anything, and the short word lists below cover most of what you'll meet on a drive around Kuala Lumpur.
Read the colour first
| Colour and shape | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Green direction sign | A tolled expressway |
| Blue direction sign | An ordinary road with no toll: federal, state or council |
| Blue sign with a green panel | This way to an expressway |
| Maroon or brown sign | A tourist or recreational place |
| Yellow diamond | A warning: a bend, a hazard, something ahead |
| Red circle | Something you must not do |
| Blue circle | Something you must do, such as turn left or keep left |
| Orange sign | Roadworks or a temporary arrangement |
Route numbers sit in a black-and-yellow hexagon. A number starting with E is an expressway (E1, E8 and so on); a plain number, sometimes written with FT in front, is a federal road. On a direction sign the furthest destination is at the top and the nearest at the bottom.
Warnings and instructions
| On the sign | In English |
|---|---|
| Awas | Caution |
| Perlahan | Slow |
| Kurangkan laju | Reduce speed |
| Berhenti | Stop |
| Beri laluan | Give way |
| Ikut kiri | Keep left |
| Dilarang masuk | No entry |
| Dilarang memotong | No overtaking |
| Jalan sehala | One-way road |
| Jalan mati | Dead end |
| Jalan ditutup | Road closed |
| Lencongan | Diversion |
| Kerja jalan di hadapan | Roadworks ahead |
| Jalan licin | Slippery road |
| Tanah runtuh | Landslide |
| Had laju | Speed limit |
| Kawasan sekolah | School zone |
| Pandu cermat | Drive carefully |
"Awas" and "Perlahan" are also painted on the road surface before junctions and bends. AWAS is also the name of Malaysia's automated traffic camera system. Our guide to speed limits and AES cameras explains how they work.
On the expressway
| On the sign | In English |
|---|---|
| Lebuh raya | Expressway |
| Keluar | Exit |
| Susur keluar | Exit slip road |
| Plaza tol | Toll plaza |
| R&R (Hentian Rehat dan Rawat) | Rest and service area, with fuel, food and toilets |
| Hentian sebelah | Lay-by, a smaller stop than an R&R |
| Lorong kecemasan | Emergency lane |
| Lorong motosikal | Motorcycle lane |
| Kenderaan berat | Heavy vehicles |
One that matters: don't drive in the lorong kecemasan. The only exception is when the highway operator opens it as a "SmartLane" during heavy holiday traffic, and PLUS announces where and when before each holiday. If you break down, that's the lane to stop in. Our guide to the highways around Kuala Lumpur decodes the E numbers and the highway initials.
Directions and places
| On the sign | In English |
|---|---|
| Utara, Selatan, Timur, Barat | North, South, East, West |
| Pusat bandar | Town or city centre |
| Jalan | Road (as in Jalan Ampang) |
| Simpang | Junction |
| Bulatan | Roundabout |
| Lampu isyarat | Traffic lights |
| Pusingan U | U-turn |
| Di hadapan | Ahead |
| Surau | Prayer room |
| Tandas | Toilets |
| OKU | Disabled (as in OKU parking bays) |
Petaling Jaya adds its own puzzle: many roads are numbered by section rather than named, so an address like Jalan 13/2 means road 2 in Section 13. Grandpride's showroom is on exactly that road; if you'd rather not hunt for it, the rental cars can be delivered to you within the Klang Valley.
Quick answers
Are Malaysian road signs in English?
Mostly not. Bahasa Malaysia is the main language on signs; English appears alongside it at airports, stations, checkpoints and tourist areas. Pictograms do most of the work everywhere else. If that sounds like too much for your first day, a chauffeur can drive while you get used to the roads.
What colour are expressway signs in Malaysia?
Green for tolled expressways, blue for ordinary roads. If a blue sign has a green panel on it, that panel is pointing you to an expressway.
What does "Ikut kiri" mean?
Keep left. Malaysia drives on the left, and our guide to Malaysian driving rules for foreigners covers the rest of the basics, from roundabouts to licences.
Where do Malaysians learn the JPJ road signs?
New drivers learn them in the JPJ theory course that comes before the driving test. For a visit, the tables here are enough, and driving in KL for the first time covers the habits the signs don't tell you about.
