Traffic is still heavy on the Federal Highway to Sunway and Subang jaya.
REGULAR commuters say there has been a noticeable increase in the number of people taking the LRT following the extension of the Kelana Jaya and Ampang lines.
Conversely, however, there has been no appreciable improvement in the traffic situation since the new stations along both lines began operations on June 30.
Although some residents living in these areas say they have switched to public transport to get to work, those who continue to drive say they have not noticed a major change in rush hour traffic.
StarMetro took to the highways during the morning and evening rush hours to observe the traffic conditions that serve Subang Jaya and Puchong.
The Puchong-Damansara Expressway (LDP) has seen generally lighter traffic ever since the contra flow heading towards Bandar Sunway in the morning was made permanent last year.
For the Shah Alam Expressway (Kesas), most of the traffic congestion appears to be concentrated along Subang Jaya and Shah Alam, while traffic appears clearer to those heading to Kuala Lumpur.
Morning traffic along the LDP from Puchong to Sunway has been smoother in the past year, thanks to the one-lane contra flow which was made permanent last year.
When StarMetro travelled from Subang Jaya to Petaling Jaya last Thursday morning via the Federal Highway and North Klang Valley Expressway (NKVE), traffic was smooth at 8am except for the bottleneck at the Damansara toll plaza.
Pharmacist Florence Chuah, 31, still drives from her home in USJ 2 to her workplace in Section 13, Petaling Jaya, as neither her home nor workplace is within walking distance to an LRT station.
“I would have to spend more time taking public transport compared to driving,” she said, adding she would still need to take a bus to get to the LRT stations.
Chuah normally takes the New Pantai Expressway (NPE) rather than the Federal Highway, and feels there is not much of a difference since the new LRT stations opened.
“Before and after Hari Raya, I have been leaving home at about the same time and reaching work at my usual time,” she added.
Subang Jaya resident David Oh, 30, who travels to Bandar Utama, cites cost and convenience as the main reasons he has not switched to the LRT.
“The fare is high too. For example, travelling from SS18 to IOI Puchong Jaya costs RM4.60 one-way. Imagine if you are travelling with your family on a return trip.
“I think most people will still drive instead of taking pubic transport.
“If the Government is serious about reducing traffic congestion and encouraging public transport use, maybe they need to increase parking charges or adjust the petrol price and toll rates upwards.”
Oh added that the LRT was not as convenient as some would think.
“How do we travel to the stations from our homes?
“I still need to drive to the station and look for parking space.
“The distance between stations in Subang and USJ is also inconsistent; why aren’t there any stops near Summit USJ?”
Farah Hanan, 30, who travels from Subang Jaya to Kuala Lumpur daily using the NPE, also prefers to drive.
“The LRT fare is expensive and many who work in the city centre still need to switch to the monorail to reach their workplace.”
Office boy, Dylan Tan, 28, tried taking public transport for two weeks before realising that driving was a better option.
He said he would have to switch to the KTM Komuter to get to Mid Valley City where he works, and there is a long wait in between trains.
He said although it takes only about 20 minutes from SS18 to KL Sentral where he switches to KTM, the total travelling is an hour.
Driving takes him only 40 minutes, or up to an hour if the evening traffic is worse than usual.
“But I am still caught in a jam,” he said, agreeing there was no big change on the road since the new stations opened.
Sales and marketing executive Valerie Yee, 31, who takes the LDP to her workplace in Bandar Sri Damansara, still experiences traffic jam at the Puchong toll plaza.
“A lot of time is wasted there,” said the Puchong Utama resident.
