It is sad to note that after 50 years of independence, Malaysia still does not have a decent public transportation system in place.

If we were to compare what we have now with the public transportation system 50 years ago, then it is safe to say that we have improved. But that does not mean we can rest on our laurels.

Every year, it seems we are building more and more roads and highways. Toll gates have been "mushrooming" all over the place, but somehow the dreaded jams never go away and, in fact, often get worse.


Our public transportation system currently consists of buses (RapidKL), taxis, light rail transit (LRT) systems and the monorail.

Some of us gawk at the rapid growth taking place but if one were to examine the situation closely, we will notice that we have not really progressed much since there is no proper co-ordination among the various forms of public transport.

Compare this with some other Asian countries such as Singapore, Japan and South Korea.

These countries have a systematic public transport system that makes it convenient for people to use public transport rather than drive a car. This cuts drastically on smoke emission from cars.

If there is an integrated and effective public transportation system , productivity will be high and Malay-sians would be able to spend less time in traffic jams and more time working and getting things done.