KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 — Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) will offer free Komuter rides in the Klang Valley for two days, along with special non-stop trips for four days in conjunction with Thaipusam on February 1.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the additional trips would help the around 2.5 million Hindu devotees and tourists access Batu Caves, one of the primary locations for Thaipusam in Malaysia.
The free trips will be available from midnight on January 31 to 11.59pm on February 1, with an Automatic Gate Control (AGC) system for checkout scanning.
“This initiative is expected to cost RM1 million. However, we aim to ensure a smooth experience for passengers and minimise congestion, especially with the expected high usage of Komuter services,” Loke told a press conference at KL Sentral here today.
KTMB will operate 609 trips over this period, an increase of 23 per cent from last year. These trips will cover the Batu Caves-Pulau Sebang, Batu Caves-Port Klang, and Tanjong Malim-KL Sentral routes.
This includes 302 trips for the Batu Caves-Pulau Sebang-Batu Caves route, 165 trips for the Batu Caves-Port Klang-Batu Caves route, and 142 trips for the Tanjung Malim-KL Sentral-Tanjung Malim route (with trains connecting to KL Sentral)
In addition, 28 KTMB stations will operate all day to manage passenger flow and help vulnerable groups such as the elderly, people with disabilities, pregnant women, and children.
From January 29 to February 3, KTMB will also provide eight additional Electric Train Service (ETS) trips, covering routes such as JB Sentral-Butterworth-JB Sentral, JB Sentral-KL Sentral-JB Sentral, KL Sentral-Ipoh-KL Sentral, and KL Sentral-Butterworth-KL Sentral. A total of 10,080 tickets will be available for these services.
Meanwhile, Prasarana Malaysia Bhd, which operates Rapid KL and Rapid Penang, will offer free shuttle buses in Kuala Lumpur and Penang. In Penang, a 53-hour free ferry service will run from January 31.
“In Kuala Lumpur, 30 buses will operate from Pasar Seni, Gombak LRT, and Kampung Batu MRT to Batu Caves every 10 minutes. In Penang, 12 free shuttle buses will operate from the ferry terminal to Adventist, according to the ferry schedule. Free ferry trips will also be available in Penang from January 31 to February 2,” Loke added.
BAS.MY will also offer additional free bus trips in Johor Bahru, Seremban, Ipoh, Kota Setar, and Sungai Petani. A total of 169 buses will be deployed to key Thaipusam locations.
Loke also highlighted that safety would be a priority, with additional staff, auxiliary police, and medical teams stationed at the KTM Batu Caves Station throughout the period.
