At a crawl: Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12, according to shop owners, is congested the whole day as cars are parked on both sides of the road. — RONNIE CHIN/The Star
THE Ipoh Garden South commercial area is popular for its eateries, pharmacies, beauty salons and child activity centres.
However, it has become a victim of its own success as the area is frequently congested.
In the mornings, on weekends and public holidays, cars are parked on either side of the two-way Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12, causing traffic congestion.
In order to secure parking near his shop, soya bean drink seller Chung Min Hwa, 25, turns up an hour before his shop opens.
“During weekends, I am forced to park a distance away as most of the parking bays would have already been taken up by 8am,” he said.
“Although this is a two-way street, it becomes a narrow one-way street because people will park on both sides of the road.
“I usually park a few minutes in front of my shop to drop off items before going to a neighbouring area to park although parking there is very limited.
“I hope Ipoh City Council (MBI) will make changes to ease congestion here,” he added.
Parking on both sides of the two-way street forces traffic to become one way. — Photos: RONNIE CHIN/The Star
Chung said the way cars were parked needed to change too.
“Right now, we only have perpendicular parking spaces on one side of the road.
“I think if MBI changes it to angled spaces and makes it a one-way street, the parking site can accommodate more cars and there will be less traffic problems,” he said, adding that his customers also complained about parking difficulties.
“The shop in front of ours used to be a shipping services company but it had to relocate because there was not enough parking for its delivery lorries,” said Chung.
“In the morning, the parking bays are taken up by those going for breakfast while in the evening, the road is occupied by the cars of those picking up their children after activity classes.
“MBI needs to solve this matter quickly. It is very frustrating for us,” he added.
Hor often sees MBI officers issuing summonses for illegal parking.
Shop assistant Queenie Hor, 41, also believes that the only solution is to turn Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12 into a one-way street.
“I have no choice but to always park far from the shop.
“Regardless of what time I arrive, there is never any parking.
“It is quite a hassle to walk around carrying heavy items when I park far away, but there is no choice,” she said.
Hor said she often saw MBI enforcement officers issuing summonses for illegal parking, noting that they came at least twice or thrice a day yet it did not deter the offenders.
Choy proposed that the street be made one-way back in 2018.
“If the street becomes one-way and there are parking spots on both sides, the shortage problem will be solved right away,” she said.
A 33-year-old housewife who wished to be known only as Fatimah, said some of the other roads in the commercial area were also having the same problem.
“Just like Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12, the other roads are congested from time to time.
“Some of the roads are just too narrow to be a two-way street.
“There are a lot of shops here, but the parking spots are limited.
“I once had to walk nearly 1km just to fetch my children from a tuition centre,” she said.
Chung turns up an hour early to secure parking.
Fatimah said she had also received parking summonses from MBI when she parked illegally.
“I think I have paid about RM200 in summonses.
“As I was heavily pregnant earlier this year, I had no choice but to park illegally to save myself the long walk,” she said.
“The condition of the roads here is not good either.
“There are potholes and some roads are uneven.
“During the 15th General Election, I was hoping that MBI would fix it but it did not,” she added.
Personal assistant Joey Loh, in her 30s, called for the traffic flow in the entire commercial area to be reviewed.
Some road users suggest that the perpendicular bays be changed to angled parking bays to improve traffic flow.
“Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12 is one of the streets that is always congested, so this will also affect the other roads in the area.
“The traffic flow for the entire area needs to be reviewed and revamped,” said Loh, who sends her daughter for music and art classes in the area.
“Roads like Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12, Tingkat Taman Ipoh 11, Tingkat Taman Ipoh 7 and Lebuh Taman Ipoh in the commercial area need to be turned into one-way streets,” she emphasised.
Canning assemblyman Jenny Choy said she had proposed the idea of making Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12 a one-way street in 2018.
“I had put forward the idea to the city councillor in charge at the time.
“I will discuss with MBI again on how to improve the traffic flow in the affected area,” she said.
A city council spokesman said the proposal to turn Tingkat Taman Ipoh 12 into a one-way street had just been approved.
“Hopefully, this will resolve the congestion issue there.
“Road signs will be installed along with additional parking spots,” he said.
He added that work would start in the middle of next month.
