Name train station after yourself

PETALING JAYA: Eager to grow its non-fare revenue, Prasarana Malay­sia Bhd – operator of Klang Valley’s urban rail services – is offering a rare opportunity for companies to stamp their mark on its train stations.

This is possible through its Station Naming Rights Programme, billed as the first of its kind in South-east Asia when launched last year.

According to Prasarana group president and CEO Datuk Azmi Abdul Aziz, the programme offers corporations or brands the opportunity to bid for the right to transform a station beyond just a mere name change.

On Friday, AirAsia Bhd unveiled its AirAsia-Bukit Bintang station (the former Bukit Bintang monorail station) to reflect its corporate identity by turning the station red after its corporate colour.

It is understood that Bank Rakyat and Suez Capital have signed deals to brand the Bangsar and Universiti LRT stations respectively.

The new names for these two stations along the Kelana Jaya line will be Bank Rakyat-Bangsar and KL Gateway-Universiti.

The Bangsar station is about 700m from Bank Rakyat’s spanking new headquarters while Suez Capital is in the midst of building KL Gateway, which will be connected to the Universiti station via a 100m purpose-built bridge.

According to Prasarana, there has been much interest from various brands and corporations after the exercise was launched, with the company receiving many enquiries from various businesses ranging from travel to retail to property and telecommunications.

Azmi said the Station Naming Rights Programme was part of initiatives to increase usage of public transport – with the aim of hitting 40% modal share by 2030 – by continuously upgrading infrastructure and facilities.

To do that, it needs to raise revenue from non-fared based sources, given the severe difficulties it faces in raising fares. It is understood that the right to name a station starts from around RM3mil for three years, depending on the level of transformation required.

Other than selling naming rights, Prasarana is looking to grow its non-fare revenue to 30% by 2017 by cultivating property development re;ated businesses, advertising, parking facilities and retail outlets.

“This innovative and mutually beneficial partnership will result in better services and facilities for commuters along the Rapid KL network. The partner meanwhile benefits from new exposure and consumer engagement opportunities,” he said.

Prasarana currently manages 49 LRT stations, 11 monorail stations and seven bus rapid transit stations.

It will add 25 more LRT and 31 MRT stations in 2017, when the LRT extension and Line 1 of the Klang Valley MRT projects are completed.