I WOULD like to commend the media and members of parliament for their recent attention to the public transportation crisis.

For too long, government planners have shown a lack of interest in public transportation and this was reflected in their decision-making.

The fact that no new electric trains have been purchased for the KTM Komuter service (despite an increase in passenger demand) reflects this lack of interest.

So does the late decision to purchase trains for the Kuala Lumpur-Ipoh Fast Train service, as well as the selection of the Dalian locomotives.

Our elected representatives should demand an explanation about the state of public transportation in our country.

I also hope that the increased attention and awareness will lead to greater government accountability.

The stronger presence of the opposition parties should also help the cause of public transportation.

The MPs should demand that the responsibility and oversight be in the hands of a parliamentary committee (or assembly committee at state level) rather than in the hands of the cabinet (or the state executive council).

I want to congratulate the Barisan Nasional opposition leaders in Penang who are doing exactly what they should be doing, calling on the state government to forget about megaprojects and focus on building public transportation from the bottom up.

One area elected representatives should be asking tough questions about is the route planning and service that RapidKL has been offering in the past year.

In spite of a 100 per cent capital subsidy (because Prasarana owns the buses) and a 50 per cent operations subsidy (provided by the Finance Ministry), RapidKL has not been able to provide the standard of service that commuters need.

At one time, RapidKL tried to get the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board to enforce regulations on the court shuttle that linked the courthouses in Jalan Tun Perak and Jalan Duta.

The argument from the lawyers was that RapidKL could not provide the service they needed.

RapidKL responded that they were a “mass-market” provider and could not cater for small markets.

But RapidKL has been catering for a small market since 2006. The Dedicated Transport Service (DTS) is a bus service operated by RapidKL serving an exclusive market. DTS links Cyberjaya with other communities in the Klang Valley.

In the past, RapidKL leased buses from an express bus company but today they use the RapidKL long-haul buses for this service.

I personally have no problem with RapidKL operating a specific, small-market service if it is a bonus on top of an already excellent service.

However, I do have a problem with what RapidKL is doing right now.

This DTS for Cyberjaya comes at the expense of the service that they are supposed to be offering to the mass market.

RapidKL should not be using its buses and drivers to offer a profitable bus service to an exclusive market — especially when there is a driver and bus shortage on the mass-market routes.

There needs to be greater awareness about public transportation in Malaysia. RapidKL, KTM, Prasarana, MPs, and the state and federal governments all need to sort out their priorities and start working hard to improve public transportation.

MOAZ YUSUF AHMAD, Subang Jaya

Source: NST – May 26, 2008