Jalan Bangsar flood mitigation project delays

PETALING JAYA (September 26): A stalled flood mitigation project located along Jalan Bangsar is causing trouble for business owners in the area.

The Star reports that the Kuala Lumpur City Hall (DBKL) project near the Bangsar LRT station is affecting business, along with safety concerns over the dormant construction site.

Started on Jan 8 and slated for completion by June 10 in order to address flash flood issues, delays caused a new deadline of Sept 8 to be set.

Currently, a gaping hole in the road is cordoned off with plastic barriers, and business owners in the vicinity report that work stopped mid-August

“The project site has been abandoned and the contractors left a huge gaping hole on the road in front of my clinic,’’ said Dr Shanti Raju of Klinik Inter-Med Jalan Bangsar, speaking to the daily.

“The hole is filled with stagnant water and has become a breeding ground for mosquitoes.”

Klinik Inter-Med administrator P. Rajan said: “The project site blocked the entrance to our clinic and people thought we were closed and stopped coming.’’ 

The daily quotes him as saying that they saw a 40% drop in the number of walk-in patients.

“Our regulars complain that there is no place to park and the area is hazardous,’’ said Rajan.

In May 2016 flash floods stopped traffic and submerged some 115 vehicles around the area, in a situation so bad that then Federal Territories Minister Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor issued a public apology.

Pictures Talk proprietor Simone Ngai, also says they experienced a 35% to 40% drop in business since the flood mitigation project started.

“We were willing to put up with the inconvenience as the project was supposed to end the problem of flash floods once and for all,” said Ngai.

”The authorities are not talking to us. We want to know what is going on.”

The daily reports that DBKL executive director (Project Management) Datuk Mohd Najib Mohd said the project was not abandoned but had to be extended due to unforeseen circumstances.

“While carrying out works, we hit a pipe underneath the road. This happens a lot because we don’t have proper underground mapping information.

“We had to deal with the additional problem of relocating the pipe and must settle that before the project can proceed.

“For the time being, we will get the contractors to clean up the area and settle the water ponding issue,’’ he said.

At present there is no deadline for completion of the project.