By Adam Azman
SHAH ALAM, June 29 — The newly opened LRT3 Shah Alam Line can carry up to 223,560 passengers daily, far exceeding its projected ridership of 67,000 passengers a day this year, Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Hasbi Habibollah said.
He said the line's capacity is more than sufficient to meet current demand and is expected to remain adequate through 2040, despite concerns that cost-cutting measures introduced in 2018 could lead to overcrowding in the future.
Ridership is projected to reach 126,000 passengers a day by 2030 before rising to 219,100 by 2040 and 234,000 by 2050.
"LRT3 currently operates with 22 three-car train sets, enabling it to carry approximately 6,210 passengers per hour in each direction, or 223,560 passengers daily.
"The projected daily ridership in the opening year is 67,000 passengers. Therefore, the current capacity is sufficient to meet users' needs," he said in response to a question from Permatang Pauh MP Muhammad Fawwaz Mohamad Jan in Parliament on the project's delay.
The Perikatan Nasional lawmaker had raised concerns that reducing the number of train sets from 42 to 22, along with other scope reductions, could result in overcrowding during peak hours, similar to the situation on the Kelana Jaya Line.
Addressing concerns over the project's cost being reduced from RM31.6 billion to RM16.6 billion, Hasbi said the existing infrastructure had been designed to allow for future expansion if required.
"The second phase of the project is expected to include five additional stations and seven more train sets, while existing station platforms have already been built to accommodate future capacity upgrades."
Hasbi said the project was delayed due to system integration issues identified during critical testing, but the problems were thoroughly addressed through repeated testing and rectification works to ensure passenger safety and operational reliability.
"There was no increase in project cost despite the delays, as LRT3 was implemented under a fixed-price turnkey contract, with contractors subject to late-completion damages of RM2.729 million per day."
Meanwhile, he said supporting facilities, including park-and-ride hubs, have been provided at stations such as Kayu Ara, Damansara Idaman, Pasar Klang, Sri Andalas, Bandar Bukit Tinggi and Johan Setia to boost ridership and improve connectivity.
The 37.8-kilometre Shah Alam Line, which connects Bandar Utama and Johan Setia, was launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim yesterday and began operations today after receiving all required safety and operational approvals from the Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) and the Transport Ministry (MOT).
