At the press conference with reps from Persatuan Teksi Subang Jaya
Article in Selangor Times – A rail woe for Subang residents
Published: Fri, 04 Jan 2013
SUABNG JAYA: Thousands, including commuters and local business owners, will be left in the lurch if a plan to close the KTM Subang Jaya train station this month goes through.
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The KTM Subang Jaya train station which will be closed this month.
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“This station sees about 10,000 users each day. Not only that, the shops and malls here will face negative economic effects,” said KTM Subang Jaya Taxi Drivers’ Society chairperson Che Ei Mohamad.
He fears that his fellow-taxi drivers who ply the Sunway and Subang routes will also face a drop in income.
They estimate a drastic plunge of over 50% in their fare collection as they stand to lose passengers who use the station.
“We have passengers from Hulu Selangor coming here and heading to the Subang airport. They also travel here from Kampung Subang to go to Sunway Pyramid,” he said.
Che Ei expressed his concern during a press conference at the office of Subang Jaya assemblyperson Hannah Yeoh on Wednesday.
The society had initially met with Yeoh and a KTM representative on Dec 5 to call for better infrastructure like waiting lanes and rain shelter at the station.
“KTM said they won’t be able to comply with the taxi drivers’ demands as they are closing the station in January,” Yeoh said.
She was told that as the station will be integrated with lines coming from the Light Rail Transit (LRT) extension project, it will be closed for construction.
She is unsure when the closure will take effect, how long it will be closed and why the public are not informed.
“So far I’ve only been told of the closure over the phone. I have yet to receive any formal notice.”
Yeoh urged railway operator KTM Bhd to announce their plans and give the public enough time to adjust.
She said aside from her constituents, commuters from USJ16, Putra Heights and Kinrara, Puchong, would also be affected.
“We also want to know if KTMB has alternate plans to help the public get to the next closest station from here,” she added.
The train stations next to the Subang Jaya KTM station, which is on the Sentul-Port Klang route, are the Setia Jaya and Batu Tiga stations.
The Setia Jaya station is about 2.5km away, next to PJS8, while the Batu Tiga station is about 3km away, next to Taman Batu Tiga.
When contacted, a KTMB corporate communication officer said it was the first time she had heard of the station closure.
“I will need to check with the officer in charge first,” she said.
However, Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd group managing director Datuk Shahril Mokhtar on Thursday said the Subang KTM station will be closed within the next two months for one year to facilitate the LRT extension project.
Prasarana plans to provide feeder bus services at the Batu Tiga and Setia Jaya KTM stations to ferry passengers to KTM Subang Jaya.