We refer to the Malaysiakini report Najib defends second stimulus package .
Transit believes that the government needs to direct more attention to existing public transport services and inject more money into the industry.
It is known that every US$1 invested in public transport will return US$6-9 in economic growth. It is also known that congestion costs are leading to the loss of 2% of Malaysia’s GDP (approximately RM10 billion) every year.
Reducing traffic congestion in our cities will improve the economy. For these reasons, we call for the following improvements.
- Extension of passenger services (moving passengers and collecting revenues) from the Kelana Jaya LRT station to the existing Lembah Subang depot to allow the Kelana Jaya LRT line to penetrate new catchment areas in Ara Damansara and Subang Introduce better bus-stops, bus lanes, bus bays, toilets, waiting areas and bus depots while maintaining existing ones
All of the above proposals are lower in cost, faster to implement and have a high multiplier effect which in turn will cause an immediate stimulus to the economy.
The writer represents The Association for the Improvement of Mass-Transit-Klang Valley (Transit).