PETALING JAYA, Aug 29 – Building a second city and a bullet train system to solve the congestion problems in the Klang Valley were among the ideas raised at the just-concluded 17th National Housing and Property Summit 2014.
During a session on “Affordable Housing — Meeting a Growing Demand: New Thinking and New Strategies”, participants voiced their concerns on daily issues like the rising property prices as well as traffic jams.
One of the participants said a bullet train system connecting the northern region, where the land prices were ‘affordable’, and Kuala Lumpur would not only ‘open up’ the states’ economies but also help reduce cost of living.
“Klang Valley area is already densely populated and we are willing to travel far if there is transportation and I think accessibility is the crucial element to solve all the problems.
“Let’s take Japan as an example. The Japanese travelled long distance to work places in the city everyday. We could also do the same,” she said, adding that Malaysians were will to pay for the better quality of life.
Meanwhile, Syarikat Perumahan Negara Bhd president, Prof Datuk Dr Kamarul Rashdan, said the idea of creating a suburb while working in Kuala Lumpur was a good idea.Kamarul, who was also one of the speakers during the session, said the proposal involved various matters.
“It needs a detailed plan and involves huge spending on creating an efficient transportation system, land acquisition and infrastructure development.”Building a second city near a prime city, like Putrajaya, another new growth potential area can be created. This will help reduce the congestion in Kuala Lumpur,” he told Bernama on the sidelines of the summit.
He said the proposals would indirectly help address the problems of rising house prices as the land prices would be less expensive compared to that in the Klang Valley, which had escalated since the past three years.
Kamarul said in order to realise the ideas, the federal and state governments and industry players should join hands.He said areas like Rawang, Sg Buloh, Kepong, Shah Alam and Klang were among the strategic locations for the second city which were on the outskirts yet close to Kuala Lumpur.The two-day summit, which ended on Wednesday, was organised by Asian Strategy and Leadership Institute.
– BERNAMA
