Congested Little India says no to bus lane

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 5 — The proposed bus lane through Little India will worsen already bad traffic congestion here and hurt businesses still smarting from the one-way system put in place last year, local groups have said.Brickfields Business Community Society (BBCS) secretary A. Karuppiah said the government should instead divert buses and other vehicles headed to Bangsar, around Little India and not allow traffic to pass through the area unnecessarily. “Bangsar traffic is the one that’s causing the biggest jam in Little India and 60 per cent of the vehicles are from Bangsar,” he told reporters at a press conference today.

Karuppiah said if the contra-flow bus lane is implemented later this month as planned, businesses will suffer as they will not be unable to unload their goods easily.“If they want to give [the area] a bus lane, ask them to dismantle the arches,” he said, referring to the arches installed last year during a government-sponsored facelift of the area.Little India Action Committee chairman S. Pathavachalam said the proposed bus lane will only exacerbate the existing shortage of parking that has made it difficult for customers to patronise shops in here.

He claimed the traffic police were already issuing “hundreds of summons” every day to motorists who stop to shop or eat here as they had no choice but to park illegally due to lack of parking bays.“And once again the business is going to die. This has to be made clear,” he said.Lembah Pantai MP Nurul Izzah Anwar, who was also at the press conference, said the government should not make the people of Little India suffer just to meet the needs of KL Sentral and its owner, MRCB.“What’s the point of having a cultural centre if it’s just going to be a transit point?” she said.

Nurul Izzah urged the government to consider the alternative plan to divert traffic around the area as it was a win-win solution for both KL Sentral and the people of Little India.“What is important is for them to solve the problem they created... So Little India can truly be a hub to be proud of, not just used to promote (Malaysia) to India,” she said.

The Star reported today that Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) will implement a contra-flow bus lane in Brickfields on August 20 despite objections from various stakeholders.The bus flow will run through the main road of Jalan Tun Sambanthan from the Esso fuel station there and cut off to Jalan Travers at the Little India Fountain before heading towards Seputeh through Jalan Tun Sambanthan in front of Sri Paandi restaurant.

Source : http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/congested-little-india-says-no-to-bus-lane/