Post date: Aug 28, 2010 12:55:50 AM
Saturday August 28, 2010
THE infamous Rothmans roundabout, a long-standing landmark in Petaling Jaya, would soon make way for a traffic light system.
Named after the company that used to operate in the area, the roundabout is located at the intersection of Section 17, Section 14, Section 19 and SS2.
Over the past few years, the roundabout has been synonymous with traffic congestion, especially during peak hours.
A few other roundabouts in Petaling Jaya like the one at Jalan Dato’ Abu Bakar and another one in Kelana Jaya have since been upgraded to traffic light systems but this one has been put on hold because of the lack of funds.
The Petaling Jaya City Council (MBPJ) finally approved RM1.5mil for the project in its 2009 budget.
During a recent briefing session for residents staying around the area, many raised concerns that the upgrading of the roundabout and Jalan Harapan would lead to more traffic woes for them.
A representative from traffic consultants Produktif Sepakat Consulting Engineers Sdn Bhd told residents that the project would be completed in two phases.
The first phase would involve replacing the roundabout with traffic lights and upgrading Jalan Harapan until the SSTwo Mall while the second phase would see Jalan Harapan extended to connect to the Sprint Highway.
Petaling Jaya Selatan MP Hee Loy Sian, who also attended the briefing, raised several issues regarding the upgrading works.
He said there were many cars from Jalan Universiti wanting to turn left into Jalan Semangat and the council could consider having two lanes for turning left.
MBPJ engineering officers explained that there would be a dedicated lane on Jalan Universiti in front of the Sin Chew building for cars turning left and extending the left-turn lane would involve the purchase of private land and thus increase the cost of the project.
MBPJ councillor Mak Khuin Weng said with Jalan Harapan only being opened until the SSTwo Mall under the first phase, traffic would clog up the area and cars could back up until the junction.
Hee also said the Sprint Highway was already congested and having a road connecting to the highway would make the traffic jams worse.
Resident S.K. Tan, raised concerns about the safety of SJKC Chung Hwa students because the proposed link to the Sprint Highway runs behind the school.
“The original SJKC Damansara was closed a few years ago because of safety concerns. With the upgrading, there would be many cars using the road. How are parents and school buses going to pick up the students?” asked Tan.
The traffic consultant explained that a bus lay-by has been proposed along the road by the school.
Several residents from Section 19 also expressed fears that backed-up traffic on Jalan 19/8 would make it harder for them to come out of their houses, especially in the morning.
Even though the tender has been opened for the project, Hee suggested that the council further studied the matter.