New coalition to push for better public transport

A new coalition of civil society organisations , handling a gamut of concerns, has been cobbled together with the express mission of giving a voice to the commuter in pressing for changes to the government's public transport policy.

The primary intention is to ensure that the motoring, road construction industries, transport operators, and car owners do not overshadow the needs of commuters.

A decision to initiate the coalition was taken after a round-table public forum at the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall yesterday, attended by representatives of societies for the young, the disabled and the elderly, public transport activists Transit Malaysia, and social organisations Aliran, Suaram, Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations, and the Pahang Consumer Association.

Two parliamentarians, Parti Socialis Malaysia's D Jeyakumar (MP for Sungai Siput), and DAP strategist Liew Chin Tong (MP for Bukit Bendera) also addressed the forum.

Jeyakumar, whose party had organised the meeting, had offered his party's help in bringing the coalition together but insisted that it should remain independent of political parties.

"Strong corporate interests are pushing public transport policy," he said, especially for the new Mass Rapid Transit rail line for the Klang Valley.

"The people need a political voice that is just as strong" but it must be an independent and non-political people-driven initiative without the backing of any political party, not even Parti Socialis.

"Public transport is a public good," Jeyakumar said, a point emphasised by PSM treasurer A Sivarajan's comment that "the public good has been privatised".

Consumer activist Mohd Sha'ani Abdullah and the DAP's Liew both pointed out that a good public transport system was a social benefit which could help boost people's income.

"It will put more money in your pocket," said Liew, by reducing the need to own a car and cutting expenditure on hire-purchase, petrol, maintenance and highway tolls.

Public transport role in health

Environmental activist Gurmit Singh said better public transport and less car use would reduce emissions, leading to a cleaner environment, and better public health, thus reducing the cost of national heath care.

Jeyakumar (left) said public transport had been a victim of former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's vision for the country, in which he chose the US model of modernisation, encouraging greater car ownership through a national car industry and the construction of new toll highways, instead of a European model favouring public transport.

"Transport policy has been controlled by corporate interests and the government, and not by what the public wants or needs," he said.

Liew, whose father was a taxi driver, said the total number of buses in the Klang Valley today was less than in 1985 even though the urban area in the Klang Valley was now three times greater as a result of widescale property development.

He pointed out that the Klang Valley had once been served by mini-buses as well as stage buses but by 1996, the focus on the national car industry led to carmaker DRB-Hicom taking over all minibus operations.

"How can a company that makes cars also run minibuses?" Liew said.

Eventually minibus services were stopped, leaving fewer buses today to serve a booming urban population.

Public transport planning was in a mess, he said. The current structure was no help, with public transport no longer a function of the Transport Ministry but under the Prime Minister's Department with the wrong focus and priorities.

Liew (left) pointed out that the 28km Sungai Buloh-Kajang mass rapid transit system was driven by speculative considerations on property and land. "Why Sungai Buloh? Because of the 3,000 hectare Forest Research Institute land waiting to be developed.

The alignment goes through Sungei Besi Royal Malaysian Air Force station - another big development there.

It goes through Cochrane although there is no big population there, but government-linked companies are eyeing another future development in the area."

Corporate greed cripples public transport

Rajiv Rishyakaran of the Transit group pointed out that the London metropolitan area, covering a similar size of 2,000 square kilometres, was served by 12 underground lines and 7,500 buses. Hong Kong was served by 4,000 stage buses and 6,000 minibuses.

In contrast, greater Kuala Lumpur would be served by only 1,400 buses.

Jeyakumar and Gurmit Singh both noted that improved bus services could serve the Klang Valley at one-tenth the cost of the proposed MRT, and the billions saved could be spent on other projects of greater benefit to the urban poor.

Liew said public transport policy should be aimed at moving people, not cars so that people did not need to drive at peak hours.

Instead, the land transport commission SPAD was putting the cart before the horse by planning for an MRT even before a transport master plan had been produced.

"The MRT has become SPAD's main work," he said.

Rajiv called for a single land transport authority responsible for all transport planning. He cited the Singapore approach, with a Land Transport Authority at government level and a Land Transport Council comprising public representatives, civil society and transport operators providing guidance on their needs.

Gurmit said public transport users themselves were partly to be blamed for not standing up and pressing for their needs to be given priority.

He urged "fed up" public transport users to mobilize and make public transport an election issue.

Other participants brought up the lack of concern and care for the elderly, poor bus services in rural areas, wastage and duplication of inter-city services, lack of services in suburban areas and neighborhoods, inadequate and shoddy planning for providing access for the disabled, and the lack of clarity and coordination among federal, state and local authorities.

Another meeting will be held, coordinated by PSM, at which all concerned organisations from across the country would be invited to join forces in making public transport an urgent issue of public policy planning.