Long waits are a common experience for those who depend on buses. — Photos: MUHAMAD SHAHRIL ROSLI & KK SHAM/The Star
DESPITE the government’s push to increase public transport usage, regular commuters say this will be a tall order.
They highlighted several shortcomings including inconvenience, inaccessibility, unreliability and safety concerns.
International Islamic University Malaysia student Wan Muhd Faiz Wan Zaidi, 23, said the feeder bus service from the Gombak LRT station to his campus needed improvement.
“The T200 feeder bus frequency is hourly, which isn’t enough.
“The bus usually departs according to schedule but keeps breaking down,” he said.
He complained that at one point, the bus broke down in the morning about two to three times in a month, forcing him to take a taxi which cost RM10 per trip.
Wan Faiz is a member of Malaysia Land and Public Transport Fans (MLPTF), a Facebook Group that advocates for better public transport in Malaysia.
He also raised the issue of dangerous bus stops such as the SA990 near the Management and Science University campus in Shah Alam that was merely marked by a pole.
He said this and similar bus stops lacked shade, walkways and lighting, which posed a safety risk to users.
He recalled an incident where he had aimed to catch the No.750 bus in Shah Alam at 8pm, but it only arrived at 9.47pm, significantly deviating from its supposed 30-minute frequency.
The single-pole SA990 bus stop in Shah Alam has no shelter or walkways and is dangerously near the road.
Kelana Jaya resident Mohd Mirza Iqmal Sariffudin, 26, said he encountered difficulties during the recent disruption of the Kelana Jaya LRT line and opted to take bus No.772 to reach the Asia Jaya LRT station.
“However, the bus did not go directly to the station due to the conversion of a two-way road in PJU into one-way, making the transfer process to the station quite challenging,” he said.
He noted that there were no feeder buses from stations along the Kelana Jaya LRT line to his destinations of Bandar Utama in Petaling Jaya and Taman Tun Dr Ismail in Kuala Lumpur.
“The only bus to these areas from the Kelana Jaya station is No.506 and the journey from Putrajaya Sentral takes an hour and 45 minutes,” he said.
Other than bus frequency, commuters said that another major challenge was poor connections between stations and bus stops.
“I feel miserable travelling by public transport because much of my time is wasted when it could have been spent on other activities,” said Mohd Mirza.
Poor connectivity
MLPTF member Gabriel Lim, 42, called for public transportation to have better connectivity and frequency as well as longer operational hours.
Having used public transport regularly in Kuala Lumpur since 2006, he said train stations were often built far from convenient locations while buses usually travelled along main roads only.
“For example, the Kelana Jaya Line between the Universiti and Kelana Jaya LRT stations.
“From the Asia Jaya station, if someone wants to take the bus to Klang, Port Klang, Banting, Shah Alam, USJ1 or to Skypark in Subang, they would have to walk across the Federal Highway to get to the other side, next to PJ8 Tower.
Commuters say accurate and up-to-date information on routes and schedules is important.
“Although there is a covered walkway, it is not continuous,” he pointed out.
Lim said this was especially dangerous and difficult for senior citizens.
He said another big issue was the absence of bus stops next to train stations for commuters to continue their journey to their final destination.
Despite the Subang Jaya Komuter and Asia Jaya LRT stations being located near the Federal Highway, there was no access to bus stops along this artery, he highlighted.
“If there were bus stops, the Subang Jaya Komuter station would be a convenient connection point.
“Currently, the only option is to transfer from the Asia Jaya LRT station, which requires a long walk to the Federal Highway bus stop near the PJ8 Tower,” he said.
Lim suggested that local authorities address the last-mile connectivity issue by changing the road system.
“Buses using the Federal Highway run on different roads in Petaling Jaya because of the one-way street system.
“The local council thought that making more roads one-way would reduce congestion, but it complicates matters for those travelling on buses,” he noted.
Lim said his experience in Kajang was no better.
“If someone wants to transfer from the Kajang MRT and Komuter stations to bus T450 to get to Beranang, the only stop is on Jalan Besar in downtown Kajang.
Lim says public transit in Malaysia needs better connectivity and frequency as well as longer operational hours.
“The T450 service has an infrequent schedule, making transfers inconvenient.
“If someone from Beranang wants to go to Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, they will need to take bus T450 to Kajang and then walk 15 minutes to the Kajang Komuter station to catch the train.
“Since both the train and bus services have a frequency of about 30 minutes, if a passenger missed the train or bus, they would have to wait an hour, whereas the journey takes only 29 minutes by car,” he said.
Signage issue
Some commuters find LRT station signage so vague that they are forced to ask for directions.
MLPTF administrator Vincent Koh, 23, has protanopia (a form of colour blindness) and therefore cannot rely on colours as a guide.
He has to memorise names, stations and directions.
He suggested monochromatic visual aids at major stations.
“Pasar Seni station has some navigation assistance with floor markings, but it is crucial to prioritise signage,” said Koh.
Busy LRT stations like Asia Jaya, Bukit Jalil and Bukit Dukung should have multi-language support to cater to a diverse range of passengers, he said.
Koh is advocating for improved signage to enhance public transport accessibility.“At the Surian MRT station, I went to the wrong exit to ride the T807 bus and almost got into T808.
“It is also an extremely long walk to the T807 bus stand.
“T807 is at Entrance A while T808 is at Entrance B. The signage is just not clear enough.”
Koh said transfers could also be a frustrating experience.
“Many passengers, including tourists, often overlook the fact that they need to buy a separate token when making a transfer by tapping out and in again.
“The lack of seamless integration can lead to confusion and you may find yourself stranded if you fail to buy the correct token or take the wrong interchange.“Taking the Plaza Rakyat-Merdeka interchange as an example, the LRT stop is named Plaza Rakyat while the MRT station is called Merdeka although they are the same stop,” added Koh.
Another commuter, who didn’t want to be named, agreed that clear signage was an important component of public transport system.
The commuter also said the rail and bus network maps at the Universiti LRT bus stop (in the direction of Shah Alam) were outdated.
Improving frequency
Rapid Bus Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Muhammad Yazurin Sallij said the 3km Jalan Ampang bus lane trial project was crucial to addressing issues faced by passengers.
He said the success of the trial would determine the expansion of dedicated bus lanes to Jalan Genting Klang, Jalan Kelang Lama and the Federal Highway, aimed at increasing frequency and reducing waiting and travelling times for bus passengers.
Wan Faiz says the infrequency of buses are among the challenges faced by commuters.“Prior to the (Covid-19) pandemic, the Jalan Ampang bus route had a frequency of less than five minutes.
“However, manpower shortages have affected bus frequency in the area, which is also dependent on ridership and public demand,” he said.
According to a statement from Rapid Bus to StarMetro, T200 buses that used the bus-only lane were scheduled to run every hour.
“T200 buses achieved departure punctuality of between 85% and 100% in the third week of July. We will strive to improve the punctuality of the buses.”
On the issue of frequent breakdowns, Rapid Bus said the company recently embarked on a “repair-on-site” initiative.
This enabled buses to get back into operation as soon as possible, thereby minimising the loss of trips as the vehicles would not have to return to the depot for repair works.
“The number of breakdowns for route T200 in May (before the initiative was implemented) was eight, against zero breakdowns in June and zero cases in July,” the statement said.
Upgrading service
Regarding connectivity issues, Rapid Bus said that by year-end, route T789 (from Asia Jaya station to Mahsa University) would be extended to the Phileo Damansara MRT station, allowing Kelana Jaya LRT line passengers to transfer to the Kajang MRT line to reach Bandar Utama and Taman Tun Dr Ismail.
Rapid Bus said it had identified key improvement areas – boosting bus availability and reliability through increased repairs and preventive maintenance; and enhancing bus infrastructure like lanes, stops and walkways by collaborating with local councils.
On that note, it had identified bus stops to be upgraded, one of which was SA990.
Mohd Mirza says taking public transport is time-consuming.According to the press statement, Rapid Bus was engaging with Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) to help upgrade bus stops since infrastructure improvement fell under the jurisdiction of the local authority.
It said most issues stemmed from the shortage of bus drivers, known as captains, and to address this, it would improve the remuneration package for better recruitment and retention.
As for connectivity to popular destinations, the company said actual demand needed to be assessed and for this, it had conducted proof-of-concept studies to compare people’s movement patterns against existing bus routes.
Rapid Bus stated that it had identified 14 key transit hubs that required upgrading for smoother passenger transfers.
“Of these, nine fall under Rapid Bus’ scope and approvals have been obtained to proceed with procurement.
“The rest are under the purview of local councils, for which discussions are ongoing,” said the statement.
Regarding bus connectivity along the Federal Highway, Rapid Bus clarified that for routes 750, 751, 770 and 772 which served destinations such as Shah Alam and USJ1, bus stops were available along the highway near landmarks such as Ford (PJ598), the old KWSP building (PJ596), Setia Jaya KTM station (PJ600) and Batu 10/Mentari Court (PJ606).
Rapid Bus also said that a revamp of wayfinding signage was currently underway at LRT and MRT stations.
It added that QR codes had been installed at all bus stops for commuters to scan with their smartphones to see the live location of buses serving that stop.
When asked about outdated network maps, Rapid Bus said it was looking into providing integrated maps that aligned with existing journey planner apps.
Options being considered included replacing static maps with interactive touchscreen kiosks.
Meanwhile, it said commuters could plan trips through the Pulse app, MyRapid kiosks or Google Maps to locate live bus arrivals.
