Bee Yin concerned about LRT route changes

PETALING JAYA: Damansara Utama assemblywoman Yeo Bee Yin is concerned about the recent route amendments to the Light Rail Transit (LRT) line 3 project which is part of the Urban Rail Development Plan (URDP).
The URDP will connect Bandar Utama to Johan Setia in a total length of 36km. The proposed LRT 3 will provide four interchange stations that would allow passengers easy transfer with other transit systems such as the Kelana Jaya LRT, the upcoming MRT1, KTM and the BRT federal highway.
Yeo said she is concerned because Prasarana Negara Bhd, who are overseeing the development of the LRT 3 have changed the route of their tracks without informing the stakeholders involved.
“I didn’t know anything about this; I don’t even know if this is final, we only got this information through a report by consultants on the internet,” she said during a press conference today.
The original route which was initially discussed with stakeholders by Prasarana was supposed to pass through Lebuh Bandar Utama to Persiaran Bandar Utama which would then connect to the One Utama Station at One Utama.
The new plan now sees the line going through Kampung Sungai Kayu Ara to get to the One Utama Station.
“There are a lot of concerns about this change, since they are building it near the river bank, there are concerns of erosion and possibly flash floods in that area,” she said.
She also added that this change will affect the residents of Damansara Utama due to the congestion it will cause when the station is built.
“There will be lots of congestion because many people who commute to work will park their car in and around the area, if there is no parking spots they might park in the housing areas as well,” she said, warning that the area might become like the Taman Bahagia LRT station in Petaling Jaya which is always congested.
She is calling for Prasarana to come and explain their plans to the residents and stakeholders in the area so that they are aware of the development plan.
“Right now, even they do not know about this, Prasarana needs to inform them,” she said.
Yeo also informed that from the Perception Survey carried out in 2014, only 28% of respondents are aware of the LRT 3 project.