By Nur Adilah adilah@mystar.com.my
Having ample parking spaces seems to be a big issue for all major cities and towns. While the government has spent billions of ringgit on the mass rapid transit (MRT) and light rail transit (LRT) networks to ease traffic congestion in and surrounding Greater Kuala Lumpur, there is still the issue of having sufficient parking space at the stations.
At MRT and LRT stations, commuters will park their cars at designated areas before taking public transportation to their respective workplaces.
The current occupancy level in Kuala Lumpur’s park and ride facilities are tremendously high at over 90%. While the figure shows that it has not yet achieved full occupancy, the reality is that not all the car parks are of equal demand.
Some car parks are filled beyond their capacity, leading to commuters coming up with innovative parking ideas around these car parks’ vicinity.
A large number of vehicles are mainly occupied by motorists and motorcyclists who live within the one- to two-kilometre radius from the MRT or LRT station. Most of these vehicles occupy the car park spaces between 8 am and 7 pm, after which the car parks will literally empty out.
This is a normal occurrence, particularly among adults whose workplaces are located in the vicinity of the public transportation route.
Following the completion of the LRT 3 (Bandar Utama-Klang line) and MRT 2 (Putrajaya line) projects in the next few years, more people would be leaving their vehicles at the parking bays to utilise these public amenities.
Parking hassle would likely double by then since more stations would be constructed and existing parking spots are limited.
MRT2 (Putrajaya line) would benefit the public in a few years, but more parking bays would be needed at the stations to cater to increasing demand.
With the limited parking spaces, some errant users are likely to park their vehicles illegally, affecting the residents of the surrounding areas or cause traffic issues when their parked cars restrict or block accessways.
Often, individuals drive alone to the stations as they are not living within walking distance. This type of car park users usually fills the facilities very quickly.
The high vehicle ownership in Malaysia contributes to this insufficient car park issue. According to the Road Transport Department (JPJ), as of December 2018, 31.2 million motor vehicles were registered as compared to 28.18 million in 2017.
In efforts to mitigate the impact of this problem and encourage public transportation ridership, developing more parking bays at stations that are already filled would seem more beneficial.
Working towards a greener environment, carpooling may be a wise decision, but this is provided that the passengers are staying in the same vicinity.
As for other eco-friendly alternatives, people may need to walk from their homes and take a bus to the stations. Given the last-mile distance, the frequency of buses during rush hour needs to be increased to encourage more people to take the bus rather than drive to the stations. This will inadvertently reduce the car park congestion issues at frequently used stations.
Stay ahead of the crowd and enjoy fresh insights on real estate, property development, and lifestyle trends when you subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.
