The members of Transit were pleased to note announcements from the Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) that they are looking into a study to implement a network of physically separated bus lanes on roads leading to and within KL. Unlike existing bus lanes which are only painted on and poorly enforced, these bus lanes would be separated by a kerb from other mixed-traffic lanes.

The lanes will also be used to introduce a system of Bus Rapid Transit - a public transport mode that attempts to combine the advantages of rapid transit (reliable, frequent and fast service) with the cost advantages of using bus technology (lower capital costs, uses existing roadways in many cases, and can be implemented faster than other options).

On the surface, Bus Rapid Transit appears to be an ideal solution for Kuala Lumpur's congestion and public transport woes. It would make buses more reliable and faster, which would encourage more people to use public transport.

The lower cost of construction (perhaps as little as RM10-20 million per km as opposed to RM350 million for MRT) means that the same amount of money would buy a lot more public transport services. And since the network would take advantage of existing roadways, the time it takes to implement the system would be far less than the other alternatives.

Based on these technical reasons alone, BRT makes a lot of sense as it will put public transport within the reach of more people - and this is probably the main reason why Transit generally supports the concept of BRT as a part of the whole solution for the Klang Valley's congestion and public transport woes.

However there are obvious challenges with the Bus Rapid Transit system. One big challenge would be dealing with the perception that BRT is taking lanes away from cars (it's not - BRT is actually redistributing the trips that people take in order to make the road more efficient).

Then there is the enforcement issue - people will express their concern about errant motorcyclists, drivers, and even cyclists and pedestrians encroaching on the bus lanes and how it will affect the bus rapid transit system. And there are issues that are special to KL, like the way that bus operators and taxi drivers seem to prefer being parked to moving, or the way traffic police like to control traffic during peak periods, overriding the traffic lights. And then there are the traffic lights themselves, with their terribly slow sequences.

Questions about whether there is enough space for Bus Rapid Transit can be answered in a simple sentence. Yes, there is enough space in KL for bus-rapid transit. The trick is to find that space and make it work effectively without forcing public transport (and public transport users) to make even more sacrifices.

The other important challenge is to eliminate the bottlenecks that slow down rapid-transit service. There is no point in developing a system that allows you to speed in from the suburban housing areas only to slow to a crawl after crossing the MRRI and entering the urban areas of KL.

One partial solution would be to introduce contra-flow bus lanes - even double bus lanes - which would make the service more efficient and effective. Another partial solution would be to ensure quick access to bus terminals at the edge of KL's urban areas. Spare a thought to the time wasted by buses driving along Petaling Street to get to the Klang bus stand/Pasar Seni LRT station.

They could approach the LRT station and Klang bus stand from the south using the access off the Jalan Kinabalu roundabout, but unfortunately, someone has decided that the access should be kept closed - adding 10 to 20 (and often even more) minutes to the average bus trip into KL from the south & west.

And this is why Transit also wishes to caution the government and Spad and remind them that before they implement any form of public transport technology, they need to get feedback from all stakeholders, not just the government ones, at the early stages.

We have seen too many examples of ‘great plans’ for public transport that fail to get feedback from bus operators and especially from the public at the early stages. Unfortunately, it appears that Spad may be continuing the same practices of the past - practices which have not worked effectively.

Before a new system is implemented, we need to ask tough questions about why the old system did not work. Otherwise we will be stuck in the same mess.

We have already heard that there is a plan for a single bus operator for the BRT system. How does the government plan to deal with the other bus operators that currently provide service on these routes? If they cannot provide service will they be sidelined? Bought out? Run out of business? Will this affect services offered on other bus routes?

These are the kind of questions we need to start asking right now, before we move further into the plan and build a system that sounds good in theory but is a massive failure in practice.