In conjunction with the Federal Territories Day celebration, Kuala Lumpur Mayor Datuk Ahmad Phesal Talib shared his plans for 2013 in line with the implementation of the Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020.

Traffic congestion in the city remains a concern among KLites and Ahmad Phesal said more would be done to encourage city folks to use public transportation. This is also in line with the expansion plans of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) and Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) as the latter is scheduled for completion by 2016.

Ahmad Phesal also talked about his efforts to transform KL into a green cit and the congestion pricing plan but said the system can be taken into consideration if Kuala Lumpur’s public transportation system is efficient.

Below is the excerpt of Astro Awani’s recent interview with Ahmad Phesal.

Astro Awani: Public transportation usage seems to be a top concern for City Hall. Can you give some figures on the usage of public transportation among city folks and what is City Hall’s target.

Ahmad Phesal: One of the areas that we want to look into is the usage of public transportation and traffic congestion. Right now, only 19 per cent of the public use public transportation and the remaining 81 per cent use private vehicles. As part of the Kuala Lumpur City Plan 2020, we want there to be a 40:60 public transportation and private vehicle ratio usage in the city.

Astro Awani: How will the expansion plans of the LRT and MRT project affect future property developments in the city?

Ahmad Phesal: We will control the development of buildings in line with the expansion plans of the LRT and MRT. Before a project is approved, we will check the location of the building. It should be at least 200 metres away from the nearest LRT and MRT station. The use of public transportation is an essential part of city planning. Hopefully this will encourage people to use public transportation.

Astro Awani: Apart from relying on public transportation, what can be done to minimise traffic congestion in the central business district of Kuala Lumpur?

Ahmad Phesal: We will build community centres outside the city. There will be shopping malls, education centres, banks, hospital and medical centres so they do not need to go to the central business district.

Astro Awani: Are there any plans for expansion for the ‘Park and Ride’ service?

Ahmad Phesal: We want to concentrate on the ‘Park and Ride’ service. Right now we have one at Sungai Besi and Bandar Tasik Selatan. We want to encourage the public to leave their car at these ‘Park and Ride’ areas and use the LRT or MRT to enter the city. The ‘Park and Ride’ facility will also be equipped with toilets, shops and it will be more comfortable.

Astro Awani: The congestion pricing plan has been implemented in cities like Singapore, London, Milan, and Stockholm. Will Kuala Lumpur implement such system?

Ahmad Phesal: We are still considering this system as it has been implemented in other cities. However, the only problem is that we need to look at the reliability of our public transportation system. If we prohibit private vehicles from entering the city, are we confident that the public transportation will be efficient?

If someone from Klang or Kajang does not experience seamless connectivity, then this plan would fail. The implementation of the congestion pricing plan can only depend on the effectiveness and reliability of our public transport system.

Astro Awani: Under the government’s Greener KL programme, City Hall has been tasked to create green spaces and plant more trees in the city. What is City Hall’s long-term goals?

Ahmad Phesal: We’ve received RM14 million to plant trees in under this programme. Last year, we managed to plant 37,000 trees. 30,000 were from City Hall while the private sectors were supposed to plant 5,000 trees but they contributed 7,000 trees instead.

At the same time, we’ve taken a step to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between City Hall and the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) for forestry preservation efforts.

Astro Awani: People are still dumping garbage in our rivers. Is this a hindrance towards realising the River of Live project?

Ahmad Phesal: We are aware of this problem and this can be addressed by having more awareness campaigns.

However, we are focusing on the implementation of the project. Right now, we are focusing on upgrading works and we want to ensure wet market operators do not throw their waste into the river. We also want the river bank to be used for recreational activities like cycling. With these facilities present, people would appreciate the river banks.

Astro Awani: What is City Hall doing to strengthen security at parks and to encourage the public to visit such places?

Ahmad Phesal: I am very concerned about security at parks. We now have “Friends of Kerinchi”, “Friends of Kiara” and soon we will have “Friends of...” at other parks. We want to encourage more activities during the weekends. We will have coach to teach them aerobics, Tai Chi, and other health and fitness activities. City Hall has allocated a budget to pay for the honorarium for these coaches. So far, we have coaches at Taman Titiwangsa, Taman Permaisuri, and Taman Kepong.

At Taman Botani Perdana, we have projects to create fine dining restaurants. We also want to install canopies for weddings and other social activities. We want it to be a focal point for activities.