Subscribe in a reader | Subscribe by Email The new RM300 million bus terminal (air-conditioned and has a food court, surau and closed- circuit TV system, among others) started operating 3 days ago, and there’s been both optimism and opposition to the new terminal.
Commuters face the biggest problem – longer travel time and higher cost:
However, some commuters were not happy with the move. They said the new terminal was far from the town centre and government offices.
Lim Boon Kig, 58, who was heading to Banting said it took him 90 minutes to reach Klang Sentral from his home in Sekinchan, instead of just 45 minutes previously.
“At the old terminal, there would be several buses to Banting. I could just hop on one without waiting.
“Here, not only is it further, I have been waiting for 30 minutes and there is not a single bus to Banting yet.”
Housewife Zainiah Mohamed, 35, was at a loss with her three young children in tow, wondering how to get back to her home in Banting after a shopping trip here.
Nallamah, 55, from Bandar Sunway in Subang, went to the nearly-abandoned station yesterday afternoon to catch the bus home.
“I’m now told I will have to go back to the Jalan Meru bus station in Kapar to catch a bus to Sunway.”
It seems MPK has distributed pamphlets on the changes of bus service. According to one officer, there are five pick-up points in Klang town including the old bus station. However, the I guess people still have to travel to Meru and take a bus from there in certain cases.
Some traders seemed to be optimistic:
More than 90 per cent of the shoplots and kiosks at the new terminal have been snapped up despite the “high” rental.
Trader Shamsul Kamar Abd Razak said even though the rent was high and the terminal had been operating for only two days, business was encouraging.
“The rent is at RM3,000 for a convenience store and about RM2,000 for a kiosk but I’m in this for the long term and I’m confident business will pick up.”
But those in old bus terminal are an unhappy lot:
With the buses and taxis gone, the 250 traders at the Klang Utara Bus Terminal claim they are now staring at bankruptcy.
Trader C. Krishnan said: “We will lose 80 per cent of our income and most of us will go bankrupt within three years.”
The lunch crowd at the Komathy Vilas was halved overnight, from about 2,000, when the Klang bus station was relocated from the town centre on Saturday.
Restaurant owner V. Jeyaraman, 40, said commuters used to make a beeline for his restaurant on arrival at the Jalan Baru bus station, located adjacent to his shop.
Stall owners at the food court at MPK Plaza in the vicinity claim they had only themselves for company over the last two days.
Zaniyah Yeob, 53, who sells nasi campur at the food court, said stall owners were dealt a double blow with the relocation of the bus station and the economic downturn.
Cendol seller Ah Seng, 52, said he had been operating his stall for about 20 years and hoped the authorities would reconsider the move.
The unhappy traders protested near the old bus station yesterday with placards and banners slamming State Assembly Speaker Teng Chang Khim and the Klang Municipal Council for being “pro-developer” The traders chanted slogans and protested for about an hour. The group together with bus operators and commuters had held a meeting and formed an action committee to protest the relocation.
Transport company lament the higher charges, but can’t do much except complain:
The local council decided to shift operations as the new terminal, located 10km from the town centre, would ease traffic congestion. The New Straits Times found operations at Klang Sentral were running smoothly.
One of the bus companies operating at the old terminal, Wawasan Sutera Travel & Tour, urged the council to open a lane for buses to pick up and drop off passengers.
Its operations manager, M. Logesvaran, said bus firms should be given more time to move to Klang Sentral to avoid huge losses.
“The rental at the new terminal is 10 times more than what we are paying now. My company will also lose a lot of time travelling as it will take us almost 40 minutes to reach Klang Sentral.”
A bus operator said companies were being charged RM900 rental per month for a counter at the new terminal, compared with just RM150 at the old terminal. Buses are charged RM10 per entry, from RM2 previously.
As calls for transparency pick up, the local council (MPK) and the state government is under pressure to manage this potential political bomb. As it is, PKR and DAP are seen to have internal squabbles and rift, with MP for Kapar, Manikavasagam as the central figure.
Even though the bus station was mooted under previous administration, the new state government should do something about it. The objective of mass transportation system is to move people efficiently.No point having a system that causes more misery for the rakyat especially in terms of cost. The bus operator may use higher operating cost to increase ticket prices.
In the long run, perhaps the banning of private vehicles into Klang town will be a better option. Heavy vehicles should be limited to certain hours, and both the old and new terminal should co-exist. There should have been an effort to integrate bus service with the Komuter service. The local council should have tried to get some land near Komuter station like Klang or Tepi Sungai.
The conduct of MB, MPK,Teng and other PR’s exco members are putting the spotlight of suspicions on them. What is stopping them from releasing the agreement ? If it is a clause, then be transparent about it. If the concession agreement is unfair, then say so and release the name of the benefector company and their shareholders and let the rakyat be the judge.
There are already accussations that many PR MPs, ADUNs and town council members have suddenly become weathier has surfaced not just at the mamak stalls and offices but also in the media.
Looking around Klang and Selangor (and also Penang), we see a lot of new private development since March 8th which ahd been fast-tracked after the new govts came into power. Who are these developers ? Where is the CAT principle ? Is it just a slogan or something that put into practise ?
BTW, I am willing to bet that Manikavasagam won’t resign from PKR and as a MP. He has too much to “lose”….