Transform transit stations into community hubs

 

From Boo Jia Cher

Imagine this: after work, you step off the LRT and find yourself in a bustling food court filled with fellow commuters. You grab a meal, enjoy a busker’s performance, and chat with locals over teh tarik.

Just 50 metres away lies a grocery shop and clean public toilets maintained by attentive staff. You hop on your bicycle from a secure parking area and cycle home alone safely on dedicated cycling paths in just seven minutes.

This vision of a Klang Valley no longer car dependent is not only possible but essential for enhancing urban life.

Currently, car-centric urban sprawl, inadequate bus services, and poor facilities for pedestrians and cyclists make it a hassle to access transit stations. As a result, expansive open-air car parks for 

park and ride

 schemes have proliferated around transit rail stations, which not only diminishes the potential of these areas but also exacerbates local traffic congestion and pollution.

Valuable land around transit stations remains underutilised: if not occupied by parked cars, these spaces often sit empty.

Transit stations as community hubs

We can transform these neglected areas into lively, pedestrian-friendly community hubs. We must take several strategic steps:

Replace park-and-ride spaces with community hubs that include a food court, grocery stores, prayer rooms and essential services such as healthcare and social welfare. Those running illegal roadside stalls near transit stations should be invited to establish small stalls in the community hub.

This development will attract foot traffic and create lively environments around transit stations.

Provide safe and brightly lit pedestrian paths and cycling paths within a 15-minute radius, encouraging more residents to rely on public transport. Create bus hubs beside transit stations so that those living farther away can access the trains without needing to drive.

Introduce measures like road narrowing and speed bumps around transit stations for the benefit of pedestrians and cyclists, enhancing safety and fostering a more inviting atmosphere for community activities.

Converting park-and-ride areas into community hubs and improving connectivity will boost economic growth by drawing foot traffic to nearby businesses and generating new job opportunities.

This vision is entirely achievable. Many countries have successfully implemented transit-oriented development centred on small, local businesses, rather than the megamalls or condominiums often found in the Klang Valley.

The success of this transformation hinges on strategic locations for transit stations. Poorly placed stops, surrounded by highways and wide roads, can limit potential. Forthcoming projects such as MRT3 must learn from previous mistakes to avoid these pitfalls.

To ensure reliable and frequent bus service, we need to increase our bus fleet significantly.

The future envisioned here is within our reach. With a world-class metro system already in place, we must maximise its potential by breaking away from car-centric planning and prioritising people over vehicles.

This shift will ultimately lead to a more sustainable and liveable Klang Valley for current and future generations, paving the way for a less congested and less polluted urban landscape. - FMT

Boo Jia Cher is an FMT reader.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of  MMKtT.