The gate will allow students and staff who are PJS7 residents and RapidKL U623 travelers to enter the campus without having to use the newly built road, Jalan Taylor’s, situated next to Lebuhraya Damansara Puchong (LDP).
“Taylor’s [will] only build a gate good enough for people to walk in and out,” Taylor’s Lakeside Campus Student Central manager Saw Bee Lian said. “We will strictly control movement at the gate by issuing access cards to students who reside in this area or are taking the buses to enter the campus.”
The access card system (see sidebar) is part of the university management’s effort to keep its side of the 2007 agreement with the BSRA and Subang Jaya Municipal Council. Under the agreement, the management had requested that Jalan PJS7 be used as a temporary point of entry while Jalan Taylor’s was still under construction.
Jalan Taylor’s was opened to public use in September this year. Subsequently, the management shut the Jalan PJS7 entrance in the midst of October.
“It is part of the negotiations whereby BSRA asked us to just close it fully. So there’s no walk-in, no drive-in whatsoever... that’s what happened on Oct 11,” Saw said.
The BSRA had no objections to the access card system, provided it was exclusive to members of the Taylor’s student community living in the area or those taking the RapidKL bus to campus.
Currently, the university is providing shuttle buses for students living around this area. The buses turn in to PJS7 to pick up students on the way from Leisure Commerce Square (LCS) before heading toward the Lakeside Campus.
“The buses depart from LCS every 15 minutes, and so should arrive at the RapidKL bus stop just as frequently,” Saw said. However, students have complained that the campus buses were unreliable and infrequent, causing them to arrive late for class.
Students prefer short cut
A survey carried out by the inkslingers also found that many students do not wait for the shuttle buses and prefer walking through the Zone H parking lot behind campus to the public bus stop.
The survey found that alternative walk to campus through the residential areas proved too quiet and secluded for some students. “It does not feel safe especially at night,” said another student who declined to be named.
“For the time being, there is really no other alternative [route] except this one. It’s not that we encourage them to use it, but until the pedestrian access gate is open, this seems to be the only other option,” Saw said.
Taylor’s students and staff who have paid the RM50 deposit for an access card will not receive it until the pedestrian gate in Jalan PJS7 is open.
According to the campus circular, a deposit was necessary to ensure access card users do not violate its conditions. Only staff and students who are genuine residents will be issued the access card and non-card holders cannot tailgate. The access card will only grant entry to the owner via the pedestrian gate.
“If you violate any of the rules, your deposit will be forfeited. The whole aim really is to show BSRA that we will be controlling it strictly,” Saw said.
To apply for an access card, students and commuters must accompany their application with proof of rental receipts in the PJS7 neighbourhood or a week’s worth of public bus receipts.
By: Nurul Ain Jamaluddin, Marie Pereira & Michelle Chun (19.11.10)
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