Metro

Wednesday September 24, 2008

Bumpy rides in Sunway

By LIM CHIA YING


BANDAR Sunway residents and motorists want the six road humps along an 800m stretch of Jalan Lagoon Timur in the township removed or at least reduced.

In addition to the bumpy ride each time they use the road, there is the possibility of damage to their cars, especially on the absorbers and the steel rims of the wheels.

Businessman Robert Chan, who has an office in the area, said the stretch had too many humps which were high.

Not in use: The monorail has not been operational and residents worry about the rust build-up but the developer says it is waiting for the LRT alignment to be finalised so it can link up with the monorail.

“Each time a car crosses a hump, it has to stop. This causes congestion as the cars behind it have to slow down or even come to a halt, which is rather annoying,” he said.

“Also, I’ve seen cars scratching the humps, especially for lower-built cars. The marks are evident on the road,” Chan said.

“Do we really need six humps within such a short driving distance?” he asked.

Up and over: One of the six humps along the 800m stretch of road.

Chan also said that there were four zebra crossings along a 100m stretch.

These crossings are painted on just one side of the road in front of the commercial area, but on the other side, separated by the divider and facing the residential homes, there is no such crossing.

Resident Agnes Lee said she had requested for a ramp leading up to the divider to enable the disabled to cross the road safely.

“However, despite this request to the Subang Jaya Municipal Council (MPSJ) and a visit by the officers to inspect the condition, it has not been built,” Lee said.

“At the same time, we are also questioning why there is no zebra crossing on the residential side of the road, when there are four on the commercial side,” she said.

“No one stops at the zebra crossings now because there are too many on such a short stretch,” Lee said.

Too many: Chan questions the need for six road humps along an 800-metre stretch

When the StarMetro team members tried using the zebra crossing as pedestrians, the oncoming cars did not give way and only one or two stopped to let them cross.

Lagoon Perdana resident Alwin Lam also questioned the legality of the security guards along Jalan Lagoon Timur directing traffic in the mornings and after office hours in the evenings. The guards would stop traffic to allow workers to drive out from Menara Sunway and other offices along the stretch.

During StarMetro team’s visit, the guards were seen wearing vests with the words Polis Bantuan and directing traffic.

“All cars are stopped by the guards to make way for the cars coming out from the offices. As a result, a long jam builds up on the main road. Are the guards authorised by law to do it?” Lam asked.

“It is not fair to the drivers on the main road to be stopped for the convenience of the cars coming out of Menara Sunway,” he said.

According to Chan, in the last 14 years, traffic in the area has grown messy and worse after the two-way streets were converted into one-way roads.

He said that things would be better if beacon lights were put in place on the road to warn motorists of the zebra crossing on the road, than to have the four crossings.

“Also, if the intention is for cars to slow down for people to cross, then the authorities should install a traffic light instead of the six humps,” he said.

The residents also asked about the monorail link which had not been operational for several years and was now idle with rust.

“We are worried that the metal rust might pose risks to passing motorists,” they said.

When contacted, Sunway City Berhad property investment managing director Ngeow Voon Yean said the road was now getting busier and the humps were there to slow down speeding cars.

“The humps have been there for many years. Admittedly, this is now a high traffic area and we have converted the humps to the flat type,” Ngeow said.

“Regular users, like ourselves, would know that we have to slow down. The zebra crossings are meant to help people cross the road to the commercial area,” he said.

“At present, we are upgrading the walkways so that people can have a safer path to walk on,” he said.

On the guards directing traffic, Ngeow said it was done periodically only.

“We are just regulating traffic a bit, but it is just for a short while only. It’s just like a traffic light system for a particular period so that cars are not forced to rush in or out, for safety purpose,” he said.

On the monorail line, he said it was stopped during the construction of Sunway Pyramid 2.

“Currently, we are waiting to see the alignment of the LRT coming here. The monorail can then function as a feeder train,” Ngeow said.

“We are waiting for the final outcome before realigning some columns. We know it is a bit untidy now, especially when the other buildings are new, but we definitely want it to be in operation in future,” he said.

“Our engineers conduct checks on the structure from time to time and, so far, they have found that it is safe. But we take another look at it to allay residents’ concerns over the rust,” Ngeow said.

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