Walk the Route, LRT Concessionaire Told

Tuesday, 1 September 2009

Walk the Route, LRT Concessionaire Told

I viewed the incomplete route map and read the article "LONG ROAD AHEAD FOR LRT SUBANG JAYA" in your August, 2009 issue with interest and being a Logistics professional since 1974, I am intrigued as to the reason to build a mass rapid transit system that if there is a good chance that the public will be deterred from using it.

The reason for London, almost all major cities in Germany and central Europe, Japan, Singapore, Japan to have a working Mass rapid transit is because of the following reasons:

1) There are convenient stations which are within 10-15minutes walk AND MIND YOU OTHER THAN SPORE, MOST ARE TEMPERATE COUNTRIES. In Spore, you can find that they have stations which are seldom more than 10 minutes walk away and they are very well lined with trees for shade and well lit.

2) The stations are air conditioned or well ventilated in Singapore. In Hong Kong, you have almost all these connected air conditioned elevated or under ground walkways that connect the important buildings and route stations of the MRT together, thus making it cool to walk from station or from one's location to the other.

3) Hygiene and all air conditioning systems are functioning all the time not like in Malaysia where maintenance has always been a professional issue. Why can't Malaysians keep the public toilets clean? If you have to wash your behind after your business, please place the flush under your butt and in the toilet bowl and this will keep the floors dry and clean. No wonder the H1N1 spreads easily in Malaysia.
4) The route hits where people travel in cars and not only buses. As car travelers are the main culprits in creating traffic jams not bus commuters.

I can see the failure of the proposed LRT in Subang Jaya if there are no extra stations along the parallel road to Jln Kewajipan to cater for the SS9/USJ3/4 folks. Having it only at the USJ Hitech/Hicom area will not be of much help as a large number of people are at USJ19 as this area has many schools.

The newer USJ areas areas should also be taken into consideration and where it is near to Puchong, perhaps it can be considered under the Puchong LRT project.

I believe if there are no proper shades, maintenance of the trees, walkways, sufficient car parks, escalators and elevators, this project can kiss goodbye to support as well. Please note that Subang is an aging community being a housing area that is some 30 years in age.
With a population of some 400,000 that I was informed for Subang Jaya and growing, in particular as an education hub, I believe that the consultants and Prasarana Negara Bhd should actually walk the routes to test its viability of where the station should be located.
It is often that practical tests are not conducted for projects that have caused failures and I strongly recommend that at least the MPSJ and the Residents Associations should practically walk the proposed route and come up with practical alternatives before the implementation gets off the ground for all to regret.
Malaysia is famed for great proposals for projects but where practicality is concerned, it has shown that there will always be problems as the users are seldom consulted and their opinions honored.

"WHO KNOWS BEST BUT THE USERS"

CHEAH CHEONG TIAN