KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian government will be allowing a number of shopping malls in the Klang Valley to act as public transport hubs. According to Transport Minister Anthony Loke, this is being done to make travel easier for people who take express buses between Singapore and Malaysia.
LaLaport Transport Hub at Mitsui Shopping Park Lalaport Bukit Bintang City Centre (BBCC), IOI City Mall in Putrajaya, Sunway Pyramid, and 1 Utama are among the malls included in this new initiative, according to the report in the New Straits Times.
Mr Loke issued a caveat on Jan 21 (Wednesday) when he said, “However, these malls must first upgrade their facilities and ensure passenger safety before they can be licensed.”
LaLaPort may be the first of the malls to be given a license, which may take place as early as February. Mr Loke pointed out that LaLaPort, which is on Level LG1 of BBCC, already has the right loading and bus bays, and may work well as a transport hub for the public.
This should be good news for travellers, especially with the Chinese New Year festive season drawing near.
The Transport Ministry, together with the Land Public Transport Agency, the malls, and other relevant parties, is working to hasten the process, NST added.
“LaLaport is a specialised hub focused mainly on KL–Singapore services, aimed at attracting tourists directly into the city centre,” he said, adding, “Similarly, locations like 1 Utama have been operating informally as drop-off points. We now want to upgrade and formally license them as public transport hubs to ensure safety.”
Safety first
A major reason for establishing these transport hubs is safety.
Express buses between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur used to stop in places such as Corus Hotel Berjaya Times Square, which are not considered the safest areas for them to get down.
Mr Loke said that not only are some of these stops unsafe, because they don’t have sufficient bus bays, but they also contribute to traffic jams.
And while there are large terminals where passengers may disembark, the Transport Minister said that tourists usually prefer to get off near the city centre.
Mr Loke also said that express bus operators should work only with licensed and safe terminals.
“But they cannot simply stop anywhere they want. They must operate from licensed terminals that meet safety requirements,” The Sun quotes him as warning.
He also said the Land Public Transport Agency is ready to issue licences to malls once all requirements are met. /TISG
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