Traffic congestion on the service road off Persiaran Raja Muda Musa in Klang. There are seven schools in the area. — Photos: FAIHAN GHANI and AZLINA ABDULLAH/The Star
TRAFFIC congestion around several schools off Persiaran Raja Muda Musa in Klang, Selangor, has reached critical levels, leading to dangerous driving that poses a safety hazard for schoolchildren.
The schools’ Parent-Teacher Associations (PTA) have voiced concerns over multiple incidents where parents block roads with their vehicles, cut queues and park haphazardly during school drop-off and pick-up times.
The extreme congestion affects seven schools – Hin Hua High School, SK La Salle, SMK La Salle, SK (1) and (2) Simpang Lima, SMK Tengku Ampuan Rahimah and Regent International School.
Hin Hua High School PTA committee member Canry Leow highlighted the gravity of the situation.
“Our inner service roads are used by an estimated 6,000 students, some ferried by parents in cars, in school buses and on motorcycles, while others cycle or walk.
“It is chaotic. At times, there are near-misses or minor accidents as cars squeeze through,” he said.
Leow urged Klang Royal City Council (MBDK) to reassess movement of vehicular traffic around the schools.
He said Hin Hua High School had hired People’s Volunteer Corps (Rela) members to manage traffic outside the school gate during peak periods, namely 6.45am to 7.30am, noon to 1.30pm, and 3pm to 3.45pm.
However, Leow noted that despite the presence of Rela personnel and no-entry signs, some drivers still chose to go against traffic flow.
Leow and Jayandra want MBDK to reassess the movement of vehicular traffic around the schools during peak hours.
SMK La Salle PTA chairman K. Jayandra chided parents who blocked roads with their cars while dropping off their children.
He added that some drivers cut queues and also parked next to other cars, blocking entire lanes.
Both Leow and Jayandra urged parents to be more considerate.
“Following discussions with other school PTAs in the area, we believe that a 600m shaded walkway needs to be built along Jalan Jelutong, linking it with an elevated 180m pedestrian walkway across Leboh Jelutong to the new Taman Selatan Light Rail Transit 3 (LRT3) station,” they said.
Leow said the proposed path would help reduce traffic, as most of the students come from Bukit Raja, Bandar Bukit Tinggi, Bandar Botanic and Bandar Parklands, which will be serviced by the new LRT line.
The LRT3 is set to start operating in March 2025.
Leow added that a written proposal for the walkway was submitted to then Klang municipal council president Datin Paduka Noraini Roslan on July 27, 2022, but no action had been taken yet.
MBDK Engineering Department director Zamri Othman said construction of a shaded walkway and pedestrian bridge had been agreed upon at the council level.
However, discussions with all seven schools’ PTA committees were necessary to finalise the alignment, he said.
Klang South OCPD Asst Comm Cha Hoong Fong, when contacted by StarMetro, said traffic personnel would be stationed to regulate traffic during peak hours outside the schools as an immediate measure to alleviate congestion.
