KTMB: We’re committed to open Sentul-Batu Caves on 31 July

TRANSIT noted this article in KOSMO! Magazine giving more details about the planned opening of the Sentul-Batu Caves extension, which is now anticipated to be on 31 July 2010.

KTMB buka lima lagi stesen komuter baru di ibu kota (KOSMO!)

Oleh MAZLINA ABDUL MAJID
mazlina.majid@kosmo.com.my

GOMBAK – Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) terus komited meningkatkan taraf sistem pengangkutannya dengan membuka lima lagi stesen komuter baru melibatkan perjalanan dari Sentul ke Batu Caves bermula 31 Julai ini.

Mulai tarikh itu, perjalanan bagi laluan itu diperluaskan lagi ke tiga lokasi baru iaitu di Batu Kentomen, Kampung Batu dan Taman Wahyu selain Sentul dan Batu Caves.

Pemangku Pengurus Besar Perkhidmatan Kaunter KTMB, Mohd. Hider Yusoff berkata, selepas ini, laluan yang sebelum ini dikenali sebagai laluan Pelabuhan Klang-Sentul akan dikenali sebagai laluan Pelabuhan Klang-Batu Caves.

Beliau berkata, waktu perjalanan dari Sentul-Batu Caves dengan jarak 7.5 kilometer hanya mengambil masa 15 minit berbanding 30 minit sebelum ini.

Mengulas penambahan stesen komuter, Mohd. Hider berkata, ia merupakan usaha KTMB dalam memberi perkhidmatan yang terbaik.

“Populasi dan kepadatan kawasan-kawasan di situ juga agak besar di samping kedudukannya yang strategik.

“Justeru, kami berpendapat, pembinaan lima stesen itu mampu menampung keperluan penumpang di sana tanpa perlu bersesak-sesak,” katanya ketika ditemui Kosmo! semalam.

TRANSIT Says:

About time, too! Frankly, we are amazed that it has taken 3 years to build this extension of the line and get it operational – and we suspect that one of the reasons for the delay is that KTM did not have enough operating EMUs to allow them to serve the extension.

But now with more time to repair the trains and more time to conduct testing on the stations, we can expect that the Sentul-Batu Caves extension will be the fastest, most comfortable and most reliable section of the entire KTM Komuter service.

By the way, readers of this post might be interested in this earlier article, New commuter line to Batu Caves to ease city’s traffic congestion (The Star), as well as this recent article, Tracking Sentul East to Masjid India in the NST on Friday July, which describes some of the area around Sentul station.