KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 29 — Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) is offering a record 1,573,872 seats for its Electric Train Service (ETS) and Ekspres Rakyat Timuran (ERT) from January to March, a 39 per cent increase over the same period this year.
In a statement today, KTMB said ticket sales for both services will open in stages from November 2, allowing people to plan their travels for school, public and festive holidays.
ETS and ERT ticket sales for between January and February will open at 12pm on November 2, while tickets for March will go on sale on December 1.
According to the statement, of the total seats on offer, 1,520,592 are allocated to ETS and 53,280 to ERT.
“The figure exceeds the 1,131,500 seats offered for the same period in 2026, making it the highest number KTMB has ever provided for the first three months of the following year,” read the statement. “This increase in capacity reflects KTMB’s ongoing efforts to provide more travel options to meet the needs of rail service users.”
ETS ridership is projected to grow 6.5 per cent to 6.28 million passengers in 2027 from 5.9 million this year, matching the capacity increase.
With demand rising, KTMB will increase ETS service frequency in 2027 from 44 trips per day in 2026 to 50 per day from Monday to Thursday and 58 per day from Friday to Sunday.
The higher frequency also covers the JB Sentral-KL Sentral-JB Sentral route, where trips will rise from eight to 12 a day.
The move is expected to offer passengers more schedule options, especially on weekends and during peak seasons.
KTM announced that the Old Kuala Lumpur station and Subang Jaya station will become additional ETS hubs, widening rail access and offering alternative stations to ease congestion at KL Sentral during peak hours and seasons.
KTMB also said it will restructure its long-distance ETS timetable from January 1, which will affect routes linking the northern and southern sectors of the network.
“Direct travel on the same train for the JB Sentral-Butterworth, JB Sentral-Padang Besar and Butterworth-Segamat routes, and in the reverse direction, will no longer be offered. Passengers on these routes must change trains at KL Sentral,” the statement said.
KTMB added that tickets for long-distance ETS trips requiring a train change at KL Sentral must be bought in two separate transactions, one per travel sector, but also said it is upgrading its booking system to allow integrated purchases in a single transaction from December.
It advised passengers to check ETS schedules and allow themselves enough transfer time at KL Sentral before booking.
KTMB urged people to buy tickets early on its website or the KITS Style app, and to check schedules before booking, especially for long-distance trips requiring transfers at KL Sentral.
