MPK should spare a thought for pedestrians

What say you on the issue below?

ALTHOUGH I knew that the traffic system in North Klang had been changed, my first ride around town after the system was introduced was an eye-opener.

I had to drive around the Jalan Taiping, Jalan Gopeng and Jalan Goh Hock Huat areas before finding my way out of town.

It looks like all my shortcuts no longer exist and I will have to spend some time learning the routes all over again.

It took me almost a week to fully understand the new traffic system which will make many Klang residents lose their bearings for a while before they get used to it.

Before the traffic diversion, motorists from Jalan Taiping, Jalan Goh Hock Huat and Jalan Gopeng could get onto the Bulatan Seratus in order to go to South Klang or Kuala Lumpur, but this is no longer the case.

Motorists must now find their way to Jalan Pasar, which has become a one-way street, in order to get onto Jalan Sireh and out of the town.

The same goes for Jalan Batu Tiga Lama, which has also been turned into a one-way street.

However, one effect of the changes is that the roads are now wider, with up to four lanes in some cases, and this makes it difficult for pedestrians, especially the elderly and children, to cross the roads.

The authorities may have placed road signs to direct traffic, but I feel they have not done enough to help the pedestrians.

There are several schools, colleges, shopping complexes, a mosque and a bus terminal along these wide roads and I have not seen any new pedestrian crossings.

There is one zebra crossing near the bus terminal but there aren’t any other pedestrian crossings in the whole of North Klang.

Previously, there was one pedestrian crossing linking Jalan Pos and Jalan Taiping but it was demolished to make way for the construction of a flyover connecting the existing flyover over Bulatan Seratus to the Musaeddin bridge.

As most of the roads have been widened, the authorities should consider providing zebra crossings at the busy spots – especially near the schools, colleges and the mosque.

Besides facilitating the movement of the pedestrians, it will also help cut down the speed of the vehicles plying the routes.

Parking seems to be another concern as there does not seem to be many places for motorists to park their vehicles.

Perhaps, the Klang Municipal Council could consider providing parking spaces along the roads since most of these roads have been widened already.