Dec 15 09 - By SARBAN SINGH
SEREMBAN: Rail commuters will be able to travel from here to Ipoh in less than three hours when Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) introduces its inter-city express train service (ETS) from April 1.
The premium service, which will among others have wi-fi services, will only stop at major stations along the way.
A source said KTMB had already received a new set of the trains from South Korea and trial runs were expected to begin in the coming weeks.
“Since the train has a maximum speed of 120kph and is built based on the latest technology, commuters will be able to get from one point to another quicker,” he said.
Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat is scheduled to launch the service in Kuala Lumpur today.
The source said KTMB would get four more train sets by February.
“Each train will have six coaches which can accommodate some 300 sitting passengers,” he said.
KTMB introduced the normal Kuala Lumpur-Ipoh shuttle service beginning December last year. The journey between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh takes about three hours.
However, the new train set has a diesel-run locomotive with inter-city coaches.
It is understood that the ETS will, among others, stop at the Nilai/KLIA, Bandar Tasek Selatan, KL Sentral, Tg Malim, Tapah, Kampar and Batu Gajah stations.
With the ETS, the travelling time from Seremban to Kuala Lumpur will be 45 minutes while the KL-Ipoh route will take about two hours and 10 minutes.
The source said the new train set will look like an upgraded version of the present KTM Komuter trains.
“It will have comfortable seats and brightly lit coaches.
“The seats will also be spacious,” he said.
The source said since it was a premium service, commuters must be prepared to pay more to travel on the train.
“This is a departure from the old mode of rail travel.
“We want commuters to feel even more comfortable and to be able to do work while in the train,” he said, adding that the proposed fare had yet to be approved by the Transport Ministry.
It is understood that the service will begin at 5am with the last being at 10pm at two-hour intervals.
1 comment:
Wonderful...., great....., ...whoa whoa...wait a minute. Hold on there for a second....
After spending 4 billion riggit on job started in 2001, this being 2009.....what do you enjoy the services in April 2010 !!!!
Hello....we should have been enjoying the services in 2006 !!!
Better late than never, Mr. Singh, you'd probably say and for some , ok I agree....but when the counter staff of KTMB Ipoh does not even know that the Langkawi express is running 70 minutes behind time, then I say KTMB with the "new" toy that you are in possession with, how long will it take you to get your ground crew into people friendly mode !!!!!
The 70 minute incident was on the 17th Dec 2009. The express was due (as per timetable) at 0119hrs. The super fancy sign displayed LE due at 0129hrs and then 70 minutes delayed.
Having a plan to catch at KLIA costing me thousands left me with a horibble feeling that the situation with KTMB will change after perhaps after I have gone to meet my maker.
Ok granted services are better than they ever were before, please can someone tell me why I feel as if I'm in a first world setting run by third world mentality , in Ipoh, in this day and age.
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