Better transport connections lie with local councils, says expert

 

Transit operator Prasarana was urged last week to work with other companies in order to increase the use of public transport. (Facebook pic)

PETALING JAYA: It is up to local councils, not transit owner Prasarana Malaysia, to provide the infrastructure for better public transport connections, according to a former transport official.

Wan Agyl Wan Hassan said Prasarana will never be able to solve the first- and last-mile connectivity problem as it is not within their core business or under their jurisdiction.

Prasarana, which owns the Rapid rail transit and bus lines, had been urged by transport minister Loke Siew Fook on Thursday to work with other transport operators if it could not meet the nation’s public transport needs on its own.

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Loke was responding to a question on BFM radio about how public transport ridership could be increased given the lack of first and last-mile connectivity.

Wan Agyl, a former official of the now defunct Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) said it was up to local authorities to develop the infrastructure necessary to support better connectivity, which Prasarana has no power over.

Wan Agyl said SPAD previously had the power to influence decision-making at the local level. However the agency was decommissioned and converted into the Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) and absorbed into the transport ministry..

He said Loke “needs to understand the fundamental issue. There is no single (agency) planning for the public transport system in the country,” he told FMT.

Transport consultant Rosli Azad Khan said Loke’s statement reflected badly on Prasarana’s management. He suggested they were not capable of solving long-standing public transport problems.

He agreed that Prasarana must engage with experts and third-party operators to provide better first and last-mile services.

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“Prasarana cannot continue to work in silo. They have to engage with experts to assist them and find ways to attract more passengers,” he said.

First- and last-mile connectivity refers to the means by which a public transport user can get from his home to the nearest transport station. - FMT