Letter to Editor
DUE to Sungai Buloh’s rapid growth, most of the roads are congested not only during peak hours but off-peak hours as well.
The existing infrastructure has not kept pace with development and it will become worse when Kwasa Damansara, where registration for house purchases is now on-going, is developed.
The new DASH highway will ease the congestion somewhat for Kwasa Damansara. However there are a few bottlenecks on the other roads in Sungai Buloh on which the Malaysian Public Works Department (JKR) needs to act urgently.
Jalan Welfare in Kampung Baru Sungai Buloh needs to be widened to ease the frequent congestion and also cater to the numerous heavy vehicles headed to the nearby small and medium enterprise (SME) sector.
Jalan Welfare can only be widened by land acquisition by the government as the road reserve has already been utilised for drainage.
Jalan Baru, which was an alternative entry point, was closed in 2008 when upgrading of the Sungai Buloh-Subang road was done around the same year.
Due to this the only access to this important SME hub and residential area is Jalan Welfare. To ease the congestion a flyover can be built near the Shell station to enable the Jalan Baru junction to be re-opened for it to be used by heavy vehicles.
The terrain here is favourable for a flyover. The Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) which is the local authority for the area needs to be pro-active in resolving the problems and not hope for changes to occur on their own.
Kwasa Damansara needs to expedite the road construction between Kota Damansara and Subang Bestari near the Employees Provident Fund’s (EPF) new head office to ease congestion and also open a new route to surrounding areas.
State government planning departments must insist that the main roads be graded to make them flat especially in new housing and industrial estates.
Many of the worst traffic congestion are caused by uphill and steep stretches that slow movement of vehicles in addition to using a lot of fuel and creating air pollution.
No matter how much the traffic light timings are manipulated or adjusted the jams cannot be resolved effectively. Present-day earth movers and excavators can make short shrift of the steep terrain in no time.
Vehicles exiting from the Sungai Buloh toll plaza are immediately caught in a massive jam at the traffic light junction opposite Sierra Mas due to the sharp turn that heavy vehicles have to negotiate slowly and with difficulty to head towards Kepong or Damansara Damai.
As such the number of vehicles that can get through during the “green time” is very much limited, and hence the congestion builds up.
The bridge is too narrow and needs to be widened. PLUS Expressway had widened many bridges on the NSE in view of increased vehicular usage a few years ago but left this one out.
The bridge is within the maintenance jurisdiction of PLUS Expressway. Both the Works Ministry and the JKR Petaling need to look seriously into the problem and help alleviate it.
There is a need for an infrastructure masterplan for Sungai Buloh now that the surrounding areas such as Kwasa Damansara, Elmina City and Gamuda Gardens are undergoing massive mixed development.
Piecemeal and short-term widening of existing roads cannot cope with future traffic volume projections.
Sungai Buloh has a unique distinction of being managed by three municipal local authorities, namely the MBSA, the Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) and the Selayang Municipal Council (MPS).
It is hoped that there will be better planning cooperation and coordination especially concerning infrastructural development.
Whether or not there are train services such as ETS, MRT or LRT, the number of cars on the road is expected to increase by geometrical progression especially in the Klang Valley.
On the one hand the government is investing much and encouraging public transport, on the other the government becomes very much worried when the total volume of private vehicles especially cars sold annually declines on a year to year basis. The burden is on the government to explain this paradox! – Oct 23, 2023
V. Thomas is a Focus Malaysia viewer.
The views expressed are solely of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Focus Malaysia.
Main pic credit: KLIA2 Info