Shah Alam


Shah Alam is a city and the state capital of Selangor, Malaysia which is situated within the Petaling District and a small portion of the neighbouring Klang District. Shah Alam replaced Kuala Lumpur as the capital city of the state of Selangor in 1978 due to Kuala Lumpur's incorporation into a Federal Territory in 1974. Shah Alam was the first planned city in Malaysia after independence from Britain in 1957.

History

Malaysia grew rapidly after its independence in 1957 under its second Prime Minister, Allahyarham Tun Abdul Razak Hussein. Shah Alam was once known as Sungai Renggam and was noted for its rubber and oil palm estates. Later, the same area was identified as Batu Tiga prior to Malaysian independence, and has been a centre of rubber and palm oil trade for centuries. The Sungai Renggam Plantation was earmarked for the development of a township by the Selangor government in 1973, and under the recommendations of Vlado Antolic, a town planning advisor from the United Nations, chose the present site strategically located between Kuala Lumpur and Port Klang.
Its current name was chosen by the then state Sultan of Selangor, Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Shah, after his late father Sultan Alam Shah. Many other monuments, buildings and even a street are named after the late Sultan. Shah Alam was opened in 1974 with the purpose of making it the new administrative centre of Selangor, replacing Kuala Lumpur which was made a Federal Territory on 1 February 1974. With the consent of the Sultan, Shah Alam was proclaimed the capital of Selangor on 7 December 1978 with an initial area of 41.68 km2, and administered by a municipal council.

Enlargement

Shah Alam was enlarged several times between 1983 and 1997, the last annexation on 1 January 1997:
Through the Gazette Plan 1190, Shah Alam was extended to its present-day area of 293 km2.

City status

Shah Alam was granted city status on 10 October 2000 with Dato' Haji Abu Sujak Haji Mahmud as the first mayor. He recently served as deputy Menteri Besar or Deputy Chief Minister of Selangor. Abu Sujak declared the vision of making Shah Alam a modern city with a unique identity of a Bandaraya Melayu, showcasing the achievements of the Malay race in all sectors.

Geography

Shah Alam is located within the district of Petaling and a portion of the district of Klang in the state of Selangor with total area 290.3 km2. Due to its recent expansion, it is bordered by the cities of Subang Jaya and Petaling Jaya in the east, the district of Klang in the west, the district of Kuala Selangor and Selayang in the north, and the district of Kuala Langat in the south. Shah Alam is also one of the major cities within the Klang Valley, an area in Malaysia comprising Kuala Lumpur and its suburbs, and adjoining cities and towns in the state of Selangor, due to the Klang River flowing through it on its way westward to the Strait of Malacca.
Located in Klang Valley, Shah Alam topography is mostly flat, except in the northern part of the city where it features a prominent rolling hill.

Cityscape

Shah Alam has a similar urban layout to Petaling Jaya or Subang Jaya with housing areas occupying most of the city and commercial centres scattered around the different 'Seksyen'. There are 56 sections in total. Generally Shah Alam can be divided into three parts; the north, central and south parts. North Shah Alam consists of 18 Sections including Sections U1 and U2 and Kampung Melayu Subang. The Central Shah Alam is where all the state administrative buildings and agencies are situated. It consists of Section 1 until Section 24. South Shah Alam consists of 12 sections including Section 25, Section 30, Section 31 and Section 32. In the map, south Shah Alam is seen as the light purple coloured areas.
The city has a number of shopping malls, SACC Mall, Plaza Shah Alam. Vibrant commercial areas are situated mostly at the city centre, Seksyen 13 and Seksyen 9.
All of the main roads and streets in Shah Alam including the new townships such as Setia Alam and Kota Kemuning have signs with their names shown in both Roman and Jawi scripts.

Climate

As with other cities across Peninsular Malaysia, Shah Alam experiences a tropical rainforest climate. Temperatures are consistent throughout the year with an average high temperature of 31.9 °C and an average low temperature of 23.2 °C. The city is warmest in the month of March, and experiences heavy rains and showers during the month of November as the northeast monsoon moves in from October to March. Overall the climate is fairly humid.

Governance

The Selangor state government's decision to develop the present land into a township saw the formation of the Shah Alam Town Board, a body governed by the Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Selangor or Selangor State Development Corporation in 1963. With the declaration of Shah Alam as the state capital by the Sultan of Selangor at the time, the Majlis Perbandaran Shah Alam or Shah Alam Municipal Council was formed in accordance to the Local Government Act 1976.

Local government

Shah Alam is presently administered by Shah Alam City Council , which is an agency under the Selangor state government. It was founded as Shah Alam Municipal Council at the same time Shah Alam was declared the capital city of Selangor. Operating from a shophouse in Section 3, the council began operations on 1 January 1979 before moving twice; first to the Kompleks PKNS building on 1981 and later to a newly built 28-storey building called Wisma MPSA on 1988. With the declaration of Shah Alam's city status on 10 October 2000, the agency was upgraded into a city council. Since then, nine mayors have been appointed, with the latest being Mohd Fauzi Yatim since 2024.

Politics

Within the Dewan Rakyat, the parliamentary constituencies of is represented by Ramanan Ramakrishnan; while is represented by Azli Yusof, both from Pakatan Harapan, one represents PKR and the latter is from the AMANAH party. While the southern part of the city, is represented by Mohamad Sabu of the Pakatan Harapan, also from AMANAH.

Economy

Shah Alam economy consists of government-related for the state government as it's the capital of Selangor, outside of government, Shah Alam major economy are mostly in the manufacturing sector followed by services.
The Malaysian supermarket chain Giant Hypermarket is headquartered at the Giant Hypermarket Shah Alam Stadium in Shah Alam.
Manufacturing plays a big role in Shah Alam economy, it predates Shah Alam existence, most of them are concentrated in the Batu Tiga area and Seksyen 26, 27, and 28. Major plant include CSR Sugar Refinery, Fraser and Neave, Panasonic-Matsushita and more.
Shah Alam also features few automotive industry operation, most notably Volvo being the first and the oldest surviving automobile assembly plant in Malaysia. Proton was founded in Shah Alam and has it headquarters here. PROTON still operates their Shah Alam assembly plant despite having built a bigger assembly plant in Tanjung Malim, Perak. Toyota has an assembly plant here as well.

Education

The Universiti Teknologi MARA is located nearby the state capital. The whole university area occupies an entire section on the western hills of the city known as Seksyen 1. At Seksyen 17, there is also a branch campus of UiTM called INTEC UiTM, where its students undergo preparation programmes for overseas studies. INTEC UiTM is the only UiTM campus where non-bumiputra students are accepted for admission.
Other institutions of higher learning in Shah Alam include University of Selangor, Management and Science University, and its affiliate college, MSU College, Shah Alam also has several industrial-related education centres namely Shah Alam Polytechnic, CIAST, and ADTEC.
Shah Alam is also served by many primary and secondary schools such as SK Bukit Rimau and SMK Kota Kemuning. In some cases, the maximum capacity of students enrolled in schools exceeds the number of potential students in the residential areas. For example, in Taman Alam Megah, Taman Bunga Negara, and Taman Bukit Saga, which are situated in Section 27 and Section 28, there are three secondary schools and seven primary schools. In contrast, in Section 16 and 17, the only secondary school there is Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seksyen 16. Currently, Shah Alam has 23 secondary schools, 1 technical school, 1 vocational school, and 37 primary schools. The SMJK Chung Hwa is the only national-type secondary school within the city.
Chinese Taipei International School is situated in Section 32, Shah Alam.

Transportation

Shah Alam is well connected to other main cities in Klang Valley via a network of major highways, namely the Federal Highway, New Klang Valley Expressway, Shah Alam Expressway, Guthrie Corridor Expressway, North–South Expressway Central Link, Setiawangsa Pantai Expressway and Kemuning–Shah Alam Highway. Highways also connect the city to two major airports. The Kuala Lumpur International Airport located 30 km south of the city serves international flights and is connected via the ELITE highway, while the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang caters to domestic flights and is connected via the Federal Highway. Major roads within the city are connected via roundabouts that divide the city into different Sections. Each Section contain a network of local roads named according to a chosen theme; for example, Section 20's roads are named after animals. Shah Alam is also notable for being the only city in Malaysia to have its own route numbering for the road in the city.
The KTM Komuter commuter train service provides for residents who use public transportation to other major cities, connecting Shah Alam via the Tanjong Malim–Port Klang Route. This route stops at three stations within Shah Alam: the Shah Alam Komuter station situated at the southern part of the city in Section 19, the Padang Jawa Komuter station at Section 17 and the Sungai Buloh Komuter station at Section U20. Another KTM Komuter station located at the outskirts of Shah Alam is the Batu Tiga Komuter station situated near UEP Subang Jaya in Batu Tiga. Residents would then transfer to different routes at the KL Sentral station and Subang Jaya station which provides interchange station with LRT Kelana Jaya Line.
Shah Alam is also served by the Prasarana's Kelana Jaya line, providing rapid transit access for people in Taman Alam Megah via the Alam Megah LRT station and Subang Alam LRT station, as well Glenmarie via Glenmarie LRT station.
The MRT Kajang Line has stations located in north-eastern Shah Alam government area, particularly in Kwasa Damansara via Kwasa Damansara MRT station and Kwasa Sentral MRT station, as well Sungai Buloh via Kampung Selamat MRT station and Sungai Buloh MRT station. Shah Alam city proper will receive LRT service in 2026 as part of the Shah Alam line.
Buses and taxis provide public transport in commercial areas in the city. A bus and taxi hub is located at Section 17, providing offices for several mini buses, express buses and taxi companies as well as rental car services. This hub also provides for passengers that travel on express bus services to major cities throughout Peninsular Malaysia.