September_1971 — Page 23

་ བ་ པ་

JALAN SETESHEN

RAILWAY

GEN. POST OFFICE

STATION

JALAN

RAHANG

口

A SIGN of the growing prosperity in Seremban, a town 40 miles south of Kuala Lumpur, is its urgent need for a modern post office to handle the increasing volume of mail and to pro- vide other postal services. The 2- storey building recently completed at the junction of Jalan Rahang (Rahang Road) and Jalan Seteshen (Station Road) has been designed exactly for this purpose.

The new post office stands on two acres of soft ground. Bankau timber piling was used for all foundations. Part of the site had to be filled up to meet the Rahang Road level. The site was chosen primarily because of its central location. Across the road is Seremban's Central Railway Station, which is a stopover point along the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore trunk line. Actually, the new Seremban General Post Office serves as Divisional Head- quarters for both Negri Sembilan State (where Seremban is) and the neigh- bouring State of Malacca.

Built at a cost of M$750,000 (US$250,000), the new Seremban GPO is one of the most modern buildings in this part of Malaysia. It replaces Seremban's existing 70-year-old GPO at Paul Street.

Far East BUILDER, September 1971

Vehicular traffic

The main building offers an area of about 30,000 sq ft on the ground floor and about 20,000 sq ft on the first floor. Open space has been amply provided around the building for mo- tor traffic and parking facilities. The vehicular entry-exit to the post office is from Rahang Road; a secondary exit is on Station Road. Mail vans, trucks and official vehicles can drive around the entire compound. There is a garage for 16 staff cars, a bicycle shed, and covered loading and unloading bays - all grouped out of sight at the rear of the building. In the main compound there are 40 public car-parking lots.

The building is divided into 4 main sections - for public use, mail sorting, administration, and staff recreation. The last section, provided on the first floor, includes a canteen, a prayer room, and senior staff family quarters. Special consideration has been given to integrate all these units into a single building complex with a uniform ap- pearance. Therefore, vertical concrete louvers are used on the first floor for sun screening and added privacy.

The public foyer measures 150 ft by 24 ft and is accessible to depart

ments in charge of inquiry, registra- tion, stamps, parcel, customs, money order, and savings banking. The entire ground floor is 21⁄2 ft above the gen- eral driveway level; the internal floor is even to permit smooth movement of mail-bag trolleys and other forms of internal carriage.

A special piped-in music system has been installed for the listening comfort of both the public and the staff during office hours. A total of 480 units of assorted size steel private letter boxes are accessible externally to the public at any time of day or night. These are fixed from wall to wall on one open wing of the building at the front.

The mail sorting area is directly linked to the 21⁄2 ft high covered load- ing and unloading bay. Numerous store rooms with metal security doors for old records, mail bags and register- ed items are located at strategic points on both floors. For extra security, strong rooms are provided for the Con- troller of Post, the Postmaster and also in each service section.

Watching gallery

A highlight of this new GPO is a 260-ft long overhead watching gallery (secret passage) for inspection and de-

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