PUBLIC transport users – especially those relying on the KTM Komuter – have been suffering for years as Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong continues to delay the Klang Valley double tracking (KVDT) project.

Because of the purportedly much needed KVDT project which involves refurbishing the existing train tracks which KTM Komuter trains run on, service intervals have dropped from a previous 15 minutes (during peak hours) to 45 to 60-minute intervals currently.

This delay is to accommodate works happening on the tracks. How long should Malaysians – and especially the tens of thousands of commuters who rely on the KTM Komuter service during weekdays – tolerate such delays while the Minister remains indecisive on the matter?

The KVDT Phase 2 was supposed to have been completed in November 2019 after being awarded by the then Datuk Seri Najib Razak administration one day before parliament dissolved on April 4, 2018.

However, it’s already 2022 – and nearly three years after the targeted deadline – this project is still far from being completed. Commuters, including residents in my constituency of Bukit Gasing, are still being affected by the low frequency of the trains.

Public transport should not run at 45 to 60-minute intervals. In fact, 15 minutes was already quite bad to begin with.

Poor effort

There is no effort from the Government to improve public transportation in Malaysia yet now they are making it worse and harder for people to choose public transport. Those who have no choice but to use public transport continue to suffer.

To add insult to injury, the KVDT Phase 2 project has been delayed by nearly two years by Wee who had first insisted on cancelling the project which led to the Government being sued by the terminated contractor, only to reinstate the contract in full recently.

Two good years have been wasted on this, and now the KVDT Phase 2 is going to further delay the KTM Komuter from returning to its original service quality.

Even more baffling, the independent checking consultant (ICC) whose job it is to oversee the quality of the work done has yet to be appointed.

The Pakatan Harapan Government prioritised the speed of the project while saving RM700 mil. The value of the contract has stayed similar but has dragged on way too long while he dawdled.

In fact, after the Sheraton move, former minister (Anthony) Loke Siew Fook argued that Wee’s actions to re-tender were going to set back the project without savings to the Government which has only been proven right.

This has badly affected service performance of KTM Komuter not to mention affecting many commuters with the KTM Komuter ridership having dropped by more than half during the said period.

Wee must answer now how he is going to rectify his mess and restore the service of KTM Komuter that is much needed by the public. The Government should be working on improving the public transport system to gain the trust of the people –not making it worse by lowering the KTM Komuters’s ridership. – Aug 18, 2022

Rajiv Rishyakaran is the Bukit Gasing state assemblyman.

https://focusmalaysia.my/ktm-komuter-woes-is-wee-ka-siong-fixing-the-kvdt-projek-sakit/