KUALA LUMPUR: Another housing development near the Kampung Bohol flood retention pond here will worsen traffic in the area.
Transport expert Rosli Azad Khan said existing high-rise residential developments in the area along the Kesas Highway were already causing frequent traffic jams and delays.
"The introduction of additional high-rise residential projects without adequate public transport and traffic management solutions will only worsen the situation, affecting the daily commute of residents and increasing the risk of accidents.
"The additional traffic generated by new residents would also lead to severe congestion on the Kesas highway and surrounding roads, especially during peak hours," he said.
He added it was important to carefully plan the entry and exit points of the new housing project to avoid bottlenecks, which could lead to traffic spilling onto the highway and increasing the risk of accidents.
Rosli said a Traffic Impact Assessment (TIA), which is essential for understanding and mitigating the impact of new developments on local traffic, should cover current traffic conditions, trip generation and distribution, impact analysis, mitigation measures and public transport accessibility and safety analysis.
"This also includes an analysis of the existing traffic flow and patterns, as well as an estimate of the number of trips the new development will generate and how these trips will be distributed across the road network.
"The impact analysis will assess how the additional traffic will affect the current road network, including intersections and key junctions."
He said the accessibility of public transport and its availability and capacity to support the new development should also be assessed.
On Thursday, the NST reported that a housing developer had committed RM40 million to "upgrade" the Kampung Bohol retention pond along the Kesas Highway as part of its winning bid for a housing project tender.
Aside from the requirement to upgrade the retention pond, the developer will also fork out RM41.7 million for the premium of six plots of adjacent land measuring 10.84ha.
This works out to around RM69 per sq ft.
However, details of what will be built in the area remain unclear.
Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Federal Territories) Dr Zaliha Mustafa told a briefing the same day that there was a need to upgrade the pond's capacity to mitigate floods.
Residents, meanwhile, had questioned the rationale behind awarding prime land to the housing developer in exchange for the company's promise of deepening the pond for a mere RM40 million. They claimed that the area was already cramped with buildings and any new housing project would only lead to further congestion and other issues.