KUALA LUMPUR: Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) is offering free rides to Klang Valley KTM Komuter passengers on Feb 10 and 11 in conjunction with the Thaipusam festival, which falls on Feb 11.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said the free rides would be available from midnight to 11.59 pm, using the check-out scanning mechanism at the automatic control gates (ACG).
He announced that additional KTM Komuter services would operate around the clock for four days from Feb 9 to 12 and the Port Klang-Tanjung Malim-Port Klang route would operate on a full travel schedule throughout the celebration.
“This initiative is aimed at meeting passenger demand, particularly Hindu devotees, tourists, and members of the public who wish to experience the uniqueness of the Thaipusam celebration at Batu Caves.
“We expect nearly 500,000 passengers to benefit from this service, marking a 10 per cent increase from last year, with peak travel expected on Feb 11,“ he told a press conference at the Batu Caves KTM Station here today.
Elaborating further, Loke said the additional train services over the 4 days and 3 nights would involve 494 trips, covering 33 services for the Batu Caves-Pulau Sebang-Batu Caves route, 45 services for the Batu Caves-Port Klang-Batu Caves route, and 28 services for the KL Sentral-Batu Caves-KL Sentral route.
It will also include six services for the Batu Caves-Bangi-Batu Caves route as well as three services each for the Batu Caves-Sentul route and the Batu Caves-Subang Jaya route.
“The additional train services will begin after the last train each day, with service times starting as early as 9.55 pm for the route from Pulau Sebang to Batu Caves and 9.30 pm for the Port Klang to Batu Caves route,“ he said.
For passengers from KL Sentral, the additional train services will be interspersed between existing services starting from 11 am, improving frequency to every 30 minutes, compared to the usual hourly service on regular days, he said.
Meanwhile, Loke announced that Prasarana Malaysia Berhad, through RapidKL and RapidPenang, would provide free shuttle services at designated locations on Feb 10 and 11.
Loke added that 30 RapidKL buses would be provided from the Hab Bandar Pasar Seni, LRT Gombak, and MRT Kampung Batu to Batu Caves, with a frequency of every 10 minutes, while RapidPenang would provide 12 buses with frequencies of 20 to 60 minutes from the ferry service jetty to Adventist.
Additionally, the Penang Port Commission and Penang Port Sdn Bhd will offer 24-hour free ferry services on Feb 10 and 11, with extended service until 2.30 am on Feb 12.
He also said that the BAS.MY operator would provide additional free services in Johor Bahru, Seremban, and Ipoh to facilitate Hindu devotees travelling to nearby temples for the celebration.
