PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

SPAD inherits messy legacy from CVLB: Should we be surprised? — Moaz Yusuf Ahmad
May 29, 2011

MAY 29 — The members of Transit — Malaysia’s public transport forum — were not surprised to hear that the Commercial Vehicles Licensing Board was not able to properly manage, regulate and enforce the land-based commercial and public transport industry in Malaysia.

After all, we had heard enough stories of CVLB not having enough enforcement officers; CVLB not being able to act on certain bus companies because these companies were politically connected; CVLB not being able to enforce certain regulations because they did not have the legal authority, etc. Then there are other stories about which well-connected people were able to receive CVLB permits, what they did with those permits, etc.

But we are truly surprised to hear that SPAD representatives, on visiting the CVLB offices in January 2011 (after taking over the responsibility for land public transport in Peninsula Malaysia) discovered that files were strewn on the floor and the information system was totally mismanaged — an apparent and timely justification for the massive re-registration exercise that SPAD is forcing all commercial vehicle operators in Peninsula Malaysia to undergo.

We knew that there were problems within the CVLB. At the same time, we know that when a new organisation comes in and takes over from a previous organisation, sometimes there is a tendency to blame the troubles on the past, and a hope that the public will allow some time for the new organisation to get adjusted.

In the US, they give their incoming presidents “100 Days” to get established. The concept has also been introduced to Malaysia.

But by any measure, SPAD (which started operating in September 2010) is well beyond its first “100 Days” — never mind that most of those days were spent on the MRT project — so why is it that we are only now hearing about the problems that SPAD has inherited?

Transit has to ask some questions and we hope that SPAD will be forthcoming with detailed answers.

How were things at the Department of Railways (another organisation folded into SPAD)? After all, consider that since 2005, there have been many, many service disruptions on KTM, KTM Komuter, LRT and Monorail services. In many cases, passenger safety was definitely at risk as passengers alighted from trains and walked along railway tracks. In other cases, dangerous derailments of KTM trains disrupted rail service. In all cases, it appears that the Department of Railways has apparently not made public the results of any of their investigations (assuming these investigations were even carried out).

Also, can SPAD explain in a few short sentences what the purpose of the re-registration exercise is? It’s not that we do not agree with the re-registration — it is probably quite necessary given the massive restructuring that is needed in the commercial vehicle and land-public transport sectors. But we think that the public and the companies that are involved need to know and understand that by participating in the re-registration exercise, in a timely manner, they are contributing to the establishment of commercial vehicle and public transport sectors that are more organised and more efficient than before.

More organisation and efficiency mean better service at a lower cost. Since everything is transported by a lorry at some point, a more efficient commercial vehicle industry means reduced transportation costs — which will lower the cost of food and commercial products. Similarly, a more organised and efficient public transport service means that transport costs for individual Malaysians can be reduced and services can be expanded — giving the public better access to economic and social activities.

Finally, we are also not quite surprised that some lorry operators and bus operators association leaders are already grumbling about the new expectations that SPAD has — complaining about the increased burden of paperwork and wondering why it is all necessary.

On one hand, we hope that these associations are spending as much time helping the operators that they represent get through the exercise as they are complaining to the media. But on the other hand, we understand why they are complaining — because they simply do not know what to expect for the future.

And that is why we want SPAD to share their vision for commercial and public transport in Malaysia. We are not asking to see their master plans (as it seems that the KL Masterplan is not ready for viewing). We want to know how they plan to invigorate two moribund sectors, which have been on the verge of collapse for decades. In other words, what does SPAD want these sectors to look like when the transformation is finally finished and the “entrepreneurial” days are finally over?

* Moaz Yusuf Ahmad is a member of Transit.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication. The Malaysian Insider does not endorse the view unless specified.