Gov’t looking to have inter-state express train services running regularly, not just during festive seasons

The transport ministry says it is looking into the possibility of having inter-state express train services operating on a regular basis, not just during festive seasons. Transport minister Anthony Loke said he will discuss aspects of the matter with Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM).

He said that he was looking forward to having the additional express train services launched as soon as possible, the Malay Mail reports. “Express trains are not something new. The electric train service (ETS) has it (during festive periods), where it only takes about two hours for the journey from Ipoh to Kuala Lumpur,” he said.

“However, we have constraints in the Klang Valley because the double track is being upgraded. We are going to complete Phase 1 by the end of the first quarter of this year. The moment Phase 1 is completed, then we can look into on how to improve the efficiency and frequency,” he said.

Loke said the aim is to have KTM provide at least one or two express train services per day. “This will be very helpful for people who are staying in Ipoh and travelling to KL for work purposes. They prefer daily trips instead of putting up for the night. Many people do not want to spend the night in another place, no matter in KL or Penang, as they want to save cost and be with their family,” he explained.

He added that day-trip travel is possible with express train services as the distances between states in Peninsular Malaysia are not far. “So if our public transport service system can support this effort, then it will surely help a lot of people and encourage more to use public transportation,” he said.

For CNY, KTM is running four additional ETS trains daily from February 7 to 13 between KL Sentral and Ipoh. Loke said that all the tickets for the additional trains, of which two are express train services, had been sold out.

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