Govt approves RM50 mil to extend special bus lane, purchase demand response transit vans — Ahmad Zahid

• Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, who is also the Cabinet Committee on Road Safety and Traffic Congestion (JKMKJR) chairman, said studies showed that the implementation of Special Bus Lanes on Jalan Ampang and Jalan Genting Klang since July 3 has shown a favourable response in terms of time saving.

PUTRAJAYA (March 6): The government has approved and channeled an allocation of RM50 million for the expansion of special bus lanes and to purchase 100 Demand Response Transit (DRT) vans in the Klang Valley starting September 2024, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi. (pictured)

Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Cabinet Committee on Road Safety and Traffic Congestion (JKMKJR) chairman, said studies showed that the implementation of Special Bus Lanes on Jalan Ampang and Jalan Genting Klang since July 3 has shown a favourable response in terms of time saving.

"The data shows that there is a time saving of up to 18 minutes for the bus journey at the location (point-to-point) and based on the savings there is an increase in the number of passengers daily by 20 to 45%.

"Thus, with the effectiveness of the reduction in travel time there was an increase in bus frequency and the number of daily passengers, so the JKMKJR meeting decided to maintain the special bus route on Jalan Ampang and Jalan Genting Klang," he said in a statement issued after the JKMKJR 1/2024 meeting on Wednesday.

The meeting also agreed to extend the special bus route to Jalan Klang Lama starting June 2024, and carry out a study for the implementation of bus lanes on Jalan Cheras (Taman Connaught — Jalan Pudu) and the Federal Highway (Kuala Lumpur City Centre — Shah Alam Interchange).

Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Minister of Rural and Regional Development, said the meeting had decided to implement a new dispersal system in stages for critical locations of congestion, after receiving information from the police, Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) and the Public Works Department (JKR).

He said that the government had also implemented contra routes to help traffic congestion especially at peak times and the results of a study by the Malaysian Road Safety Research Institute (MIROS) showed that 88% of highway users agreed that contra routes are effective in reducing traffic congestion.

"(Thus) the meeting agreed to improve enforcement and operational measures to avoid issues such as accidents resulting from the installation of cones and addition of lighting when it rains and when it is dark," he said.

In addition, he said PLANMalaysia will examine proposals for development projects using the concept based on 'Transit Oriented Development' (TOD) as a long-term measure to reduce road congestion, particularly in the development and operation areas of the East Coast Rail Line Project (ECRL), Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB).

Regarding data related to road safety, he said Malaysia recorded a total of 6,443 traffic-related deaths last year with an average of 18 deaths per day, and of these, 4,480 deaths involved motorcycle users.

The JKMKJR meeting, among others, also discussed other proposals such as the dispersion of Johor Bahru traffic submitted by the Johor State Government and agreed to the proposed construction of a 7.4-km long covered footpath and the addition of 175 bus stops by the Ministry of Housing and Local Government (KPKT) throughout 2024 in Klang Valley.

"I hope that this initiative can be implemented in accordance with the plan to ensure that the quality of the country's public transport services can be improved, thus further attracting the people to switch to the use of public transport services to meet their mobility needs.

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