Klang folk feel unsafe using overhead bridge

PEDESTRIANS trying to cross the busy Jalan Langat in Klang dare not risk using the overhead bridge at night due to the presence of vagrants and the lack of lighting.

The bridge, meant to make it easier for those trying to reach Hospital Tengku Ampuan Rahimah (HTAR) or Masjid Jamek Ar Rahimiah, has instead caused a safety issue.

Those who spoke to StarMetro want Klang Municipal Council’s (MPK) enforcement team to patrol the bridge, especially at night, to ensure their safety.

According to father-of-one Muhamad Syafiq, 26, many were scared to use the pedestrian bridge.

“In the past, MPK officers on motorcycles would stop and walk up the bridge, twice in the afternoon and again in the evening, before patrolling Taman Rakyat and Taman Sri Andalas.

“This gave people a sense of security that the area was safe from vagrants,” he said, adding that the council officers had not been doing so of late.

Many homeless people used the bridge for shelter and this deterred pedestrians, said Muhamad, who also complained that all the lights on the bridge were not working.

During a site visit, StarMetro found a vagrant seated at one end of the bridge and all 15 lights there damaged.

Selangor Safe Community and Environment Association ad hoc committee head Dr Elangovan Krishnan, 51, said people were afraid of using the bridge because of the vagrants.

“They sleep there and seem to have made the bridge their ‘home’,” he said.

To improve safety, Dr Elangovan said banners should not be tied on the bridge railings as they blocked the view of pedestrians using the bridge.

“MPK should also revive enforcement patrols on the bridge,” he said, adding that the bus-stop nearby was also in need of refurbishment.

Pensioner Johan Surib, 65, said MPK should build a better bus-stop that offered commuters adequate shelter from the elements.

“It needs to be comfortable and clean,” said the father of six.

Johan also urged commuters who use the bus-stop and the pedestrian bridge not to litter.

“Our local council and the people must work together to keep the area clean,” he said.

Homemaker Shanmugip Priya, 32, said the drain behind the bus-stop was clogged with plastic bottles.

“Tree roots have grown into the drain and blocked water from flowing freely. There is also a lot of overgrowth,” she said.

“MPK must clean up the bus-stop area as it could be a potential mosquito breeding ground.

“Apart from that, the bus-stop should be improved with better lighting at night.”

MPK Corporate Communi-cations Department director Norfiza Mahfiz said the local council would ensure all the lights at the bridge were fixed, to discourage homeless people from occupying it at night.

She added that MPK would also refurbish the bus-stop area.