YOU are probably familiar with the traffic congestion in Penang, crowded with cars, buses, lorries and bikes. Such traffic woes affect our personal life, career, health and even safety.

Firstly, traffic congestion causes unpredictable delays that stress us out when we are rushing for appointments, work or to catch a flight. As if that’s not bad enough, traffic jams also take away precious time with our family, reduce our private time and disrupt our work-life balance.

According to UK researchers, an extra 20 minutes of commuting a day have the same effect as receiving news about a 19% pay cut.

Traffic jams have a real impact on our time management and psychological well-being. That’s probably why we are seeing many road-rage incidents nowadays.

Secondly, long rows of vehicles on the road mean more fuel is wasted. More carbon is released into the atmosphere, causing a rise in global temperatures. Pollution means poor-quality air for us to breathe. That’s how traffic congestion contributes to climate change and health issues.

Thirdly, traffic jams aggravate emergency cases, as police vehicles, fire engines and ambulances cannot reach their destination in time. In emergencies, each second counts. Being just one second late could mean death.

Designing good road infrastructure and public transport is, therefore, very important. Solving traffic woes will bring relief to many aspects of our lives. Better transport infrastructure means happier workers and more economic benefits – studies have shown that happy employees are 13% more productive. And, commuting plays a big part in this.

The good news is that the Penang Transport Master Plan is coming. With light rail transit and a new highway, there will finally be relief.

A seamless and accessible transport system is key to achieving higher standards of liveability. – February 20, 2020.

* Tan Chen Tat reads The Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.