By Sarawakian
In a blink of an eye, we have now reached June. The hotter climate has begun, and it seems like there will be a real summer now. The month of May saw the 277th Pope elected in the conclave on Thursday, May 8th, 2025. Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, 69 years old who was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA became Pope Leo XIV. This would be the 2nd Pope from the Americas after Pope Francis (Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Argentina).
Last month, we also read about our PMX visiting Russia where he met and had a dialogue with Vladimir Putin, the President of Russia. I wonder if PMX would visit Donald Trump of USA soon. Anyway, the weather has begun to turn dry and hot. Walking around the Taman and to the bus stops or LRT stations would require an umbrella or a cap. The temperature averages 34 deg C and the Real Feel can go up from 38 deg C with UV levels above 6 mostly.
The past few weeks, I was going around with some friends to places in Taipan and SS14 and SS15 Subang Jaya. These locations were chosen because they are near our houses and close to the LRT stations. It is quite convenient, and the timetable is normally met. Stations are quite clean, but it would have been better with brighter toilets and better notices to show you where to go.
For those who are not too familiar, the payment can be done either with cash or cashless for ad hoc travel. There are also the My50 (unlimited travel for 30 days), MyCity Day Passes (Unlimited for 1-, 2- or 3-day type passes), MyTouristPass (similar to MyCity but has more benefits and discounts at tourist places. Cost more though), OKU Smile (Free for OKU) and Concession Cards. Concession cards are for senior citizens and students. You can get this card by registering online. If you pay in cash, you must buy at the counter for the 50% discount. For us, we just use the counter to purchase. Saves us the hassle of registering and collection.
The LRT line in Subang Jaya on the Kalana Jaya Line begins at Putra Heights interchange and ends at Gombak. A journey that would take you about 1 hour and 50 minutes. You can even get a bus to Genting Highlands from there. Buses are operated by Genting. On the reverse, on the Seri Petaling Line, you can get from the Putra Heights interchange to Sentul Timur in about 1 hour and 10 minutes. I got this information from Google.
Nevertheless, in Subang Jaya alone, you have 10 stations including Subang Jaya’s station (which is integrated with the KTM station to Pelabuhan Klang and KL Sentral) and Putra Heights station. At the USJ7 station, you can take the BRT towards Sunway and end at the Setia Jaya KTM station (Klang line). It is quite well connected. Those heading to the Wawasan Schools or Tun Tan Siew Sin School can use the Wawasan and Alam Megah stops, respectively.
The past few weeks, a group of us went on a few window-shopping trips to while away our time. The longest was to Suria KLCC. The train ride took us close to 1.5 hours from 9am. We could walk around KLCC and see the fountains and even walk over to Pavilion KL and around the shopping district there. From there we could take the MRT Bukit Bintang back to KL Sentral and then changeover to the LRT back to Subang Jaya. By the way when we were in Pavilion KL area, we took the MRT to eat Satay Kajang. Haji Samuri. It took us one hour by the train and a few minutes away to that. It was a very tiring day for us when we got back near 10pm that day. We did not go to TRX though the MRT was a few stops away from the Bukit Bintang station.
On another day, we took the train and stopped at the Abdullah Hukum station to walk around MidValley Megamall. The station is connected via a bridge to the Gardens Mall. The best part is that the toilet at the Gardens is just by the entrance. We have also been to Sunway Pyramid as we stopped at the USJ7 station and then took the BRT to stop at the Sunway Lagoon station before taking close to a 10-minute walk to Sunway Pyramid via a covered elevated walkway. We would also at times take the stop at SS15 to walk around SS15 or to walk to Subang Parade which is only about 15 minutes away past McDonald’s. This route is better than the one at the Subang Jaya LRT station. It is easier to walk and reaches the main entrance.
Other shopping centres on the route are Summit USJ and DaMen at the USJ7 LRT station and Main Place at the USJ21 LRT station. If you take the train to Putra Heights and interchange to the Seri Petaling line, you could stop at IOI Puchong LRT station to head to IOI Mall Puchong. If you continue onwards, you could even reach Bukit Jalil stadium. Great for concerts. If you want to go to Pavilion Bukit Jalil, head to Awan Besar LRT station and look for the Free Shuttle Bus. The train is only 30 minutes and the shuttle bus to Pavilion would take about 15 minutes.
Taking the LRT is comfortable and the BRT and MRT experience were just as good. The stations had security personnel at the platform but none patrolling the lobby below. The toilets were clean and dry mostly and the elevators were working. But again, signs needed to be improved in order to be noticed. The only issue we faced was the same issue being brought up countless times. The pedestrian walkways to the LRT stations and bus stops or from certain Taman or commercial areas are really in need of improvements. The walkways need to be checked for possible hazards.
So, this hot June, why not take a stroll to the shopping centres with the LRT connections! It is fun!
