Asia Mobiliti and gaps in public transport’s first, last miles

 

Asia Mobiliti Technologies, the firm linked to Hannah Yeoh’s husband, has been in the news a lot recently.

The company is one of two selected to run a nine-month proof of concept for a Selangor Mobility demand-responsive transit (DRT) project.

I hope that in doing so, they are looking to address the “first and last mile” issues faced by commuters of our public transportation service.

If they have studied the market properly, they would recognise gaps in the areas where the MRT, LRT, and KTM Komuter corridors are located.

Numerous research studies have been conducted, and based on information obtained by my consulting office, I have published several articles highlighting the predicaments users face every time they use mass transit services.

After all, not everyone can afford the luxury of being dropped off at a transit station by a private car.

Using e-hailing services means you have to fork out a substantial fare, possibly more than the average transit fare itself. Feeder bus services, on the other hand, are unreliable, far from ideal, and often involve long waiting and journey times.

So, there is little choice available, and the fallback position is to get a small car and drive to the office daily. It is a decision people have come to make despite the ever worsening traffic congestion, as it takes you from door to door in reasonable comfort.

Forget the question of whether MACC should investigate their appointment by the Selangor government. The real question is whether the Selangor Mobility project can fulfil this role.

Ultimately, the government must be serious about tackling traffic congestion. So much has been spent on building mass transit facilities, and yet we have failed to address the issues surrounding the first and last miles.

Simply put, it makes us all look incompetent. Much larger cities, like London, Tokyo, and Singapore seem to manage their mass transit systems much more effectively.

To address these gaps, the state and local governments could consider the following measures:

Enhancing feeder bus services: Increase the number and frequency of feeder buses, preferably minibuses, that connect residential areas and business districts to transit stations. Selangor Mobility can, and should, play this role.

Introducing micro transit solutions: Implement flexible, on-demand shuttle services that can operate in areas with lower population densities where fixed-route services are less viable. This is what Asia Mobiliti is currently doing.

Implementing community shuttles: Develop community-based shuttle services tailored to the needs of specific neighbourhoods, particularly those with limited access to traditional public transportation and/or where e-hailing is too costly. Does Selangor Mobility cover this aspect?

Expanding bike and scooter sharing programmes: Provide accessible and affordable bike and scooter-sharing options near transit stations to facilitate the first and last segments of a commuter’s journey. Examples include Gojek in Jakarta, and Bike Taxi in Thailand.

Improving pedestrian and cycling infrastructure: Invest in safe, well-lit, and direct pedestrian and cycling paths that connect neighborhoods to transit stations.

Developing park-and-ride facilities: Create more park-and-ride lots near transit hubs, allowing commuters to drive part of the way and then use public transportation for the remainder of their journey.

Are these measures difficult to implement? Or are they rocket science inventions beyond our expertise? - FMT

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