RESIDENTS in several housing estates in Cheras fear that a proposed 47-storey serviced apartment project will bring about traffic problems.
The residents from Taman Cheras Hartamas, Taman Bukit Segar, Taman Bukit Segar Jaya 2 and 3 and Taman Danau Mas are objecting to the project, located at Lot Pt 15287, Jalan Cheras Hartamas in Kuala Lumpur
Pangsapuri Cengal Joint Body Management chairman Selina Yap said Jalan Cheras Hartamas was the only road for residents to enter and exit their apartment.
“We are concerned as it is a high-density project with 960 units on a 1.13ha land. It is not a low-density bungalow project which the land was supposed to be used for,” she said after the first objection hearing against the project at Menara DBKL 1 in Jalan Raja Laut, Kuala Lumpur.
“Jalan Cheras Hartamas is the only access road for the proposed serviced apartment as well,” she said.
Yap said some residents of Pangsapuri Cengal, which has 208 units, currently park their vehicles along Jalan Cheras Hartamas.
“If this project goes through, can you imagine the number of cars using the road, and parking outside the new apartment if there is insufficient parking bays?” she asked.
Yap also questioned the Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA) study submitted by the project’s developer.
“I think the data is inaccurate.
“A one-day traffic count on Jan 20 was done in Jalan Cheras Hartamas.
“It was a Friday and a week before Chinese New Year so the amount of cars on the road would not have been as much,” she said, adding that a new TIA should be done.
She said residents were not against development but were requesting for a low-density project instead.
Teratai assemblyman Tiew Way Keng, who was at the meeting, said residents were also concerned that the developer had applied to Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) to change the land status from residential to commercial.
She added that the proposed 1,500 parking bays for residents including visitors was insufficient.
Tiew also said residents were unhappy with the TIA suggestion to instal traffic lights at the T-junction of Jalan Cheras Hartamas and Jalan Cemara.
Residents, she said, want DBKL to allow the road reserve from the roundabout of Taman Danau Mas to Taman Bukit Segar to serve as an alternative entry and exit point.
Developer Amber Homes Sdn Bhd director Edward Liao said the project was downsized from 1,130 units to 960 units.
“The TIA was done based on the 1,130 units and it passed.
“Also, the project is 50m from the Taman Connaught MRT station and the whole point of it is to utilise the infrastructure that the Government had invested in,” he said when met at the hearing.
Liao said the TIA found that Jalan Cheras Hartamas was at “Level A”, meaning it was underutilised.
“The survey on Jan 20 this year was done during peak hours, from 7am to 10am and 4pm to 7pm,” he said.
Liao said based on the TIA, the road would still be classed as a “Level A” in 2027.
Another director Ryan Mah said an independent traffic management specialist was appointed to conduct the TIA.
“The report is based on their expertise to reflect the proper sample of traffic in the area,” he said.
