Bukit Jalil the New Central Bus Station

Published: 04/13/2010 by LIM CHIA YING

KUALA LUMPUR: North and south-bound travellers now have to take their buses at Bukit Jalil following the four-month closure of the Puduraya bus terminal.

The closure, which took effect yesterday, is to facilitate upgrading and renovation works at the Pudu-raya terminal.

However, many were unaware of the change and turned up at the terminal.

Although notices were put up to indicate shuttle buses were being provided by RapidKL at a fee of RM2, from Puduraya to Bukit Jalil and vice-versa, passengers said the signs were not visible enough and they only realised the terminal was closed upon seeing all the shutters down.

Traders operating in the terminal were also unhappy that they were given less than a week’s notice to move to the new site.

Some demolition works started yesterday as hawker stalls in the food court were taken down.

Taxi services to Genting High-lands, however, are still operating from the terminal.

The Bukit Jalil Complex Parking Lot F, which serves as the new temporary site, only serves passengers headed north and south while east-bound travellers still have to board the bus at Hentian Putra.

THE Puduraya bus terminal was closed yesterday for at least the next four months but a trail of garbage has been left behind, making the place look like a dumping ground.

A check inside the terminal revealed that since early morning, the management had started tearing down the food court section comprising hawker stalls and steel structures and beams.

Some parts of the terminal have been inundated by water, leaving the floor slippery and filthy.

On the other side of the terminal the traders’ shops were also being slowly cleared. Some traders were seen throwing out whatever they did not need while others were carting away their gas tanks and belongings.

Currently, the only entry to the terminal is via the overhead bridge and taxi services to Genting Highlands and rental cars bound for the north and south still operate from here.

A level down, the terminal was devoid of the usual buzz and waiting passengers, save for some traders and security personnel hired by UDA Management to monitor the place.

Many people were caught unawares by the closure, as they continued to make their way to the main entrance before realising that the shutters were down.

While a big banner had been put up to inform commuters that North/South-bound buses had been relocated to the Bukit Jalil Complex Parking Lot F (adjacent to the Bukit Jalil hockey stadium), it was apparent that it had gone unnoticed by many.

RapidKL shuttle buses were provided to ferry passengers to and from Bukit Jalil, at a fee of RM2 with a frequency of 15 minutes.

However, notices informing passengers of where the shuttle bus services could be taken were only put up at 10.10am.

Passenger Chan Yoke Sim, 59, said she did not know of the closure until seeing the closed doors when she reached Puduraya.

“Even my taxi driver friend who dropped me off did not know it was closed,” Chan, who is heading for Batu Pahat, Johor, said.

“This is so inconvenient for elderly people like me and it’s a waste of our time and money to come here in the first place,” she added.

Teow Hong Keat, 19, who wanted to return to Alor Setar was also told to head to Bukit Jalil instead.

Meanwhile, inside the terminal, trader Tan Ann Sze, who was seen packing his stuff, said he was only notified six days ago that Puduraya was to be closed.

“Six days is not enough for us. Now that I’ll be relocating to Bukit Jalil, I’m worried if there will be business there for me,” Tan, 43, said.

The usually congested Jalan Pudu was also devoid of the usual lines of express buses normally parked by the roadside while waiting to pick up passengers inside.

RapidKL booth supervisor Mohamed Atan, who was coordinating the RapidKL shuttle buses outside the terminal, said there were six buses dedicated to ferrying the passengers to and fro for the next few months.

“One of my colleagues in Bukit Jalil said the tents there had not been properly set up.

“It is also congested coming out of the Bukit Jalil carpark as our buses are blocked by the express buses so it takes about an hour just to get there.

“However, the situation is usually a little disorderly on the first day,” he said.

Bukit Bintang MP Fong Kui Lun, who had received several complaints from the hawkers about the short notice, said the planning of the relocation was poor while there were not enough signs to guide passengers.

“A lot of people are still in the dark. Some taxi drivers even took the opportunity to charge high fares to ferry passengers to Bukit Jalil. I hope the Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board will take action.

“Today, I met a luggage kiosk operator, who said a lot of luggage was still stored inside the terminal as they have not been claimed by the owners. He said he did not know what to do with the luggage,” Fong said after his morning visit to the site.

He also lashed out at the temporary bus terminal in Jalan Galloway/Jalan Hang Tuah, which he said was being abandoned despite being built for RM6mil.

The closure and relocation date was initially targeted for March 19 before being postponed to yesterday.

A media tour of the Bukit Jalil site was held on Sunday. There were 98 ticket counters, a waiting area with 3,000 seats and 24 food stalls capable of accommodating 600 customers at any one time.

A UDA press statement said an enquiry counter under the UDA Mall was also available at Puduraya and Bukit Jalil.

While Bukit Jalil accommodates North and South-bound travellers, those heading to the East Coast should go to Hentian Putra, which belongs to the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL).

UDA also said the unused Hang Tuah facility was for urban buses that it said were already operating at the site.

The upgrading work at Puduraya is expected to take four months to complete.

For more information, call the hotline at 03-2078 7017 / 03-2078 6018.