THE first of the 35 LRT trains ordered for the Kelana Jaya line will arrive in Malaysia by November this year to meet increasing demands. However, commuters will have to wait until September next year before the first of these trains will be usable. The entire fleet will only be commisioned by April 2011. Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad chief executive officer Shaipudin Shah Harun said today that the reason for the 11-month wait was because the company needed to complete assembly of the trains, upgrade the power capability of the line, as well as do safety testing.. Asked about the lengthy period for the acquisition, Shaipudin said that it was the norm of the industry. ”Why does it take up to two years (for the first trains to be usable)? The answer is simple - every train is made from scratch, it costs between US1 to 2 million each and not just anybody can make them,” Shaipudin briefed reporters at a post-budget press conference held at their office. When asked why Prasarana had waited until the LRT had became congested before ordering the trains, Shaipudin said since the company only took over the operations in 2005, it could not be held accountable for what happened before that takeover. (source: NST)
I think this is a case of being stupid and selfish. This is not good for the BN government. I bet that the process can be accelerated by at least six months. Bombardier can work day and night, 24/7 to solve this issue. I don't think the people would mind if the government has to pay an extra RM10 million for this as the situation is getting worse everyday.
Forward planning is what they should do. They could have ordered new trains as soon as they took over in 2005. It has been 3 years now and people get squeezed and squashed every morning and in the evening every day. It's like waiting for accident to happen. I have seen people get pushed until they fall to the ground.
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