THE SMART Tunnel is the pride and joy of the authorities who have always touted it as the ultimate solution to the flood problems in Kuala Lumpur. When the project was rushed to be opened in January 2007, we were all told that the floods that hit the city a few months earlier would be the last as the tunnel was the longest and biggest storm drain project in South-East Asia.
True enough, for several years our capital city seemed to have been spared from any deluge despite some heavy downpour. Motorists were irritated when the tunnel had to be closed to accommodate the draining of rainwater to the retention ponds but, generally, city folk were impressed with the workings of the RM1.9bil Storm Water Management and Road Tunnel project — until last Tuesday.