Light Rail Transit in Klang Valley: Health, Environmental and Economic Impact Analysis

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2.2.2 Air Pollution

Light rail transit is known as the environmental friendly public transportation to the urban society due to the less air pollution effect compared to the road transportation such as car and motorcycle. According to United Nation (2001) most of theair pollution happened due the rapid growth in the urban area because of high fertility and rural-urban migration that give pressure to the environment. The rapid growth in the urban area force the government to increase the facility such as public transportation. The time that used to complete the light rail transit take a lot of time this give a huge impact to the air pollution because of the. During the construction of light rail transit in Klang Valley the air pollution has occur and give huge health effect to the people that live near the construction area. Due to the high population of people that lived in Klang Valley the demand for public transport such light rail transit is higher to avoid the congestion and air pollution that make by the road transport such as car and motorcycle. The demand of the rail transportation makes the air pollution getting higher and can cause several diseases such as asthma and chronic respiratory (Oliver et al 2012).

2.2.3 Vibration

Light rail transit may give a lot of benefit to the society that want to avoid the congestion issue every morning but due to the huge demand of railway transportation government will need to add more track to accommodate more passenger (G. Kouroussis et al. 2014). The vibration that generate from the track construction give a bad effect to not only people that lived nearby but also to the sensitive machinery. For people the vibration due to the track construction can generate noise pollution which may distract daily activities. The vibration from the construction can give impact to the building that nearby which cause the building to shake and it is not safe for the household to stay in that building. The heavy vibration from the track construction can cause most of the building to collapse especially low-cost building. The vibration can give effect to the sensitive machinery that used in the hospital which can cause death to the patient especially for the patient that used breathing assistance machine in the intensive care unit even if it is the small vibration.

3.0 Impact of LRT in Klang Valley: Environmental

3.1 Positive Impact on Environment

For As well-known Light rail transit in Klang Valley is one of the public transportation that have very crucial and important role in providing commuting service to the passenger that want to go to work or place that have long distances but at the same time it has the short time to reach passenger’s destination. So, there a few positive impact in the environment of the existence Light rail transit in Klang Valley which is it reduce pollution, reduce congestion, reduce accident, accelerate the time and save energy consumption (fuel). According to the previous study, (Kamaruddin, R. 2012) state that LRT is a mode of public transportation that the most preferred by citizen.

3.1.1 Reduce Pollution

The existing of the LRT in Klang Valley give a good effect in environment because LRT has less smoke if compare to other transportation such as car, bus and train. This is because LRT is made by using electronic power and it will less the smoke if compare to the previous train. If the LRT increase as public transportation, so it will make the pollution decrease. Then, this will make the air less contamination and it will make the environmentally friendly.

3.1.2 Reduce Congestion

Generally, before the existence of the LRT there have a lot of people hard to go the long distance place that they desire want to go due to the traffic jam and congestion. This is because, if many people use transport road so they have a lot of vehicles in the road and it will make the road crowded and full. Effect of this situation, people difficult to arrive the places they want to go in accurate timing. So, the presence and the existence of LRT will reduce congestion by take many people to go many place in go through one path through many places. So, this situation will decrease the people that using road and the passengers that using LRT also not face the traffic jam and congestion.

3.1.3 Reduce Accident

One of the benefit that LRT is created because when the LRT occur it will reduce an accident that happen in road if many people use LRT. This is because the LRT have their own safety system and have been conducted strategically by the expert party from LRT organization. In LRT, there have a lot of requirement that the transport must be followed such as the LRT must have good condition in the inside and outside the LRT. If people use LRT transport as a mode of their transportation, so it will reduce the probability of the accident can happen because the LRT have their own track and have their own system to it move from one place to other place which conducted by using the advancement of the technology.

3.1.4 Accelerate the Time

LRT also have advantage to make the passenger to arrive their destination in short time. So, it will make the worker easy to reach the workplace in fastest way compare to the road transportation. This situation will make the environment become more peaceful and calm to the society due to the many facilities that make life easier.

3.1.5 Save Energy Consumption (fuel)

LRT is created using the electric power. So the existence of the LRT will make the user of the fuel of road transportation decrease their consumption to buying the fuel due to the service that have been offered by the LRT. If many people use the LRT service, surely they will less use their own car and this will contribute to decreases of fuel consumption. So, government should continuously improve the LRT in Malaysia to sustain positive environmental in next 10 years. (Rozmi Ismail, M. H, 2012).

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Negative Impact on Environment

3.2.1 Vibration

The impact of Light rail transit on environment is creates the vibration. The vibration is occured once the LRT are going through the track. It is generates the vibration once the wheel touch the track. Vibration will affect to the receptors that are located along the alignment which is related to the human response. The vibrations