Following the Malaysian government’s approval of a RM50 million allocation for the expansion of bus lanes and the purchase of 100 units of Demand Response Transit (DRT) shuttle vans, the move to add more transit shuttle vans may not ease traffic congestion to the intended effect, university professors have remarked, according to a report by the New Straits Times.
Malaysian prefer to commute by private vehicles and like their cars due to limited and inefficient public transportation services, said Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia road and traffic safety psychologist professor Rozmi Ismail.
“It [the allocation to purchase the 100 transit vans] is a good initiative. But would it overcome congestion, especially since Malaysians are known for using cars rather than public transport? I am worried that the addition of 100 transit vans on the road might only worsen the traffic congestion as people will not be using it,” Rozmi told the news daily.
Universiti Putra Malaysia road safety research centre head associate professor Law Teik Hua said that the RM50 million allocation might not be enough to completely alleviate traffic congestion.
“RM50 million is a significant investment considering the scale and complexity of the region’s transportation needs. Comprehensive solutions require long-term planning, multi-stakeholder collaboration, and sustained commitments. It’s crucial for authorities to prioritise high-impact projects, leverage innovative technologies, and explore funding mechanisms to maximise the effect of the allocated budget,” Law said.
Meanwhile, suggestions towards reducing traffic congestion have been offered by Selangor road safety council permanent member Tengku Ahmad Marwan Tengku Mahmud.
“The government may want to impose some reasonable or maybe higher fees to those who want to drive or ride their own vehicles in the city. The government also should improve the walkways or footpaths along the hotspot areas, as many will use the space to get around the city through public transport. The walkways should also be properly built to ensure the safety of the pedestrians,” he said.
At present, there are two DRT services in Malaysia; Kumpool, and Trek. The approval and channelling of the RM50 million allocation for extending bus lanes and the purchase of DRT shuttle vans was announced yesterday by deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is also chairman of the road safety and traffic congestion cabinet committee (JKMKJR).
The committee has also decided to implement a new dispersal system in stages to deal with critical areas of congestion, after having received information from the police, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and the public works department (JKR).
What do you think, regular city-going readers? Would the transit shuttle van service work for your routine? Would the suggested improvements to public transport and walkways be enough to draw you away from your own rides for the daily commute? Let us know in the comments.
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Gov should think introducing Tram
setelah pandemic
gaji semua dah naik
duit simpan beli kereta
coba naik harga minyak
coba naik harga parkir
mantap waktu Pak Lah
Correct, as a Malaysian I prefer private transport for the following reasons
1. cleanliness (don’t want to smell sweat, breathe in coughs, sit of dirty seats, walk on dirty alleyways)
2. privacy (don’t want to hv others listening into my conversation , smell my fart etc)
3. safety (don’t want to risk getting mugged)
4. convenience (don’t want to wait indefinitely without info on when the next ride is going to come, carry shopping like a donkey)
5. freedom (dont want my journey to be dictated by queues, cancellations or set routes)
The closest to achieving that is Grab
I imagine the following has to happen
1. improve MRT service, properly interconnected, stations in safe environments, brightly lit, clean, punctual, frequent , policed (so that don’t hv to argue with strangers) , safe with functioning CCTV everywhere etc etc
2. ban all private vehicles from city centre especially Hilux, Ford Ranger, Range Rover, X5 etc.. huge tanks that has no business being in the cramped congested city roads
3. Small Grab cars , increase competition by allowing other vendors
4. massive , clean, safe parking lots at the outskirts so people can then commute safely via the MRT etc
Professor Rozmi Ismail is contradicting himself. he said malaysians like to use private transport because public transport not efficient. so now government is making it more efficient with 100 additional buses and Prof Rozmi said people don’t want to use it. so how? don’t add buses say not efficient transportation system. add more say nobody will use.
can’t agree more, please start with low hanging fruits – improve the walkways, the whole idea is people oriented. As a public commuter myself, notice there are whosewhom lack of civic mindedness – errant motorbike using pedestrian pathway as short cut and parking, not just cause inconvenience, it has endanger the safety of pedestrian
As long as there is no CBD charge,no carpooling efforts,poor last mile connectivity,haphazard LRT/MRT INTEGRATION,people will continue to drive single occupancy vehicles.
The hole blardy public transit network is based on cronies lobbying for huge megacontracts.They get paid.Look at the MRT ridership…still 50%.
In Bolehland…the rakyat is last.When got aduan,”kami akan memantau”..from Wee wee to Ahlokekor..nothing has changed.
Abuhden if you are going to get stuck in traffic jam anyways why not do it in your own car rather that inside a packed bus? They should find ways to make buses a jam free transportation only then people will reconsider to use it.
Should follow SG and introduce COE and raise petrol price to rm30 per litre to reduce congestion
apa logic ni
Prasarana has no competion… so when there is no competition, prasarana has become lazy!!!..
I dare the gov to bring back the Mini buses… give a free hand but the Mini bus owner must be accountable for the safety of the passengers!!