RESIDENTS are fuming over the sudden closure of Lorong Perbandaran in Klang, which has worsened traffic along Jalan Raya Barat outside the Kuan Yin Buddhist temple.
Klang resident Haisha Dewi Zaid said the road closure resulted in motorists wasting a lot of time in gridlock traffic during peak hours.
She said motorists were forced to drive towards the Simpang Tujuh roundabout to exit Jalan Kota instead of cutting short their trip to enter the highway.
“Traffic is worse on weekdays during the morning rush hour, and it builds up as early as 6.45am.”
Another resident, Fairus Anuar, demanded an explanation from the Klang Municipal Council for failing to have a contingency plan for the road closure.
He said his daily commute to and from work in Kuala Lumpur was disrupted.
He alternately uses a motorcycle or car to go to work, and the road closure means that he needs to make a 30-minute detour towards the town centre, instead of taking Lorong Perbandaran, which is a shorter route for motorists heading to Kuala Lumpur.
“Whether I take the car or motorcycle, I am still stuck in traffic. Usually, I would just take the shortcut via Lorong Perbandaran and get to the main road within 10 minutes. But now, I spend at least 30 minutes in traffic along a longer route.
“The road closure was done after roadworks had been carried out along the same stretch. Those roadworks were supposed to have been completed on April 15.
“It is the end of the year now, and it is still closed and, apparently, will be closed permanently,” said Fairus, adding that his calls to the council were not entertained.
In June, a petition was signed by 500 South Klang residents, who opposed the closure of Lorong Perbandaran.
The council did not respond to the petition.
ACTIONLINE:
A Klang Municipal Council Engineering Department spokes-man said the road is closed permanently and will be utilised for the council’s purposes.
She said it would be used as the municipal council’s office zone. However, motorists will be allowed to park along the closed stretch when they visit the council.
The spokesman said the road was “municipal property” and thus, the council had the right to close it off.
“The road will not be opened to the public anymore unless they want to deal with the council.
“The area will be cordoned off with gates and a security post will be placed there.”
Initially, the municipal council closed the road to repair part of the slope along the narrow Lorong Perbandaran — a stretch which goes up a hillock from Jalan Raya Barat that leads towards the council’s headquarters.
It initially informed motorists that Lorong Perbandaran would be closed from Feb 6 to April 15.
At that time, the municipal council’s Engineering Department director, Zamri Othman, said work on the manmade slope had to be maintained, adding that it was essential to upgrade the retaining walls.
