PETALING JAYA: Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) has rolled out its largest-ever festive rail operation for the Hari Raya Aidiladha travel period following massive demand during the festive season and ongoing school holidays.
As tens of thousands of Malaysians prepare to return to their hometowns, the rail operator said it has introduced 214 additional electric train services (ETS) and electric multiple unit (EMUPlus) train services between May 22 and June 7 to cope with the increased passenger demand.
KTMB group chief executive officer Datuk Azlan Shah Al Bakri (pic) said the additional services, combined with the existing daily schedule, will raise the total capacity to 347,220 seats.
He said the number includes a 19% increase or 67,410 seats from additional coaches.
Azlan Shah said the increase marked KTMB’s largest festive seat capacity ever and surpassed the number offered during Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
He said the additional train services involve routes between KL Sentral and Padang Besar, Butterworth, Ipoh and JB Sentral, as well as Gemas to JB Sentral and Klang to Ipoh with the EMUPlus services.
Azlan Shah said that as of yesterday, 269,664 tickets or 78% of the seats were already sold for the Aidiladha travel period.
He said among the busiest sectors are the KL Sentral-Padang Besar-KL Sentral and KL Sentral-JB Sentral-KL Sentral routes, which to date have recorded ticket sales of 82% and 88%, respectively.
Azlan Shah said KTMB expects ETS tickets to be fully sold out soon as there is high demand.
He said that for travellers heading to the east coast, KTMB has added two extra coaches to the Ekspres Rakyat Timuran service and introduced two special Ekspres Lambaian Aidiladha (ELA) train trips.
He also said that 912 additional tickets are being offered through the ELA service, while another 2,040 seats have been added for the Ekspres Rakyat Timuran route.
“KTMB also offers a 30% discount for selected superior seat tickets on the ELA 1029 service from Tumpat to KL Sentral, involving 274 seats.
“To ensure smoother operations during the festive period, we have further enhanced our services, adjusted travel schedules and stationed duty officers at major stations to assist passengers,” he said.
He advised passengers to purchase their rail travel tickets early before they are sold out.
Asked if seating capacity will be increased further if ticket sales surge in the coming days, Azlan Shah said any decision to provide additional seats or introduce extra services will depend on train set availability, route capacity, operational schedules and approvals from the relevant authorities.
