How about the new bus in town

Making their presence felt

THERE are more Rapid KL buses in the streets of Kuala Lumpur since the beginning of the City Shuttle services last Friday.

Although it is weird to see the brand new buses running with only a few passengers, Rapid KL has done a good job in providing frequent and consistent service.

Rapid KL chief executive officer Rein Westra had promised city folk that there would be a constant flow of the 138 buses plying 15 routes within the five hubs – KLCC, Titiwangsa, Maluri, KL Sentral and Central Market.

“The system will not allow buses to wait at the hubs. They have to move as soon as they drop off and pick up passengers from the hubs,” he said.

A check at the KLCC hub yesterday showed that the No. 104, 105 and 106 buses were running according to schedule.

There was a waiting time of five minutes at the hub as bus drivers had to report to the station managers on ticket sales and the route.

On the way to Medan Pasar, most of the passengers asked the bus driver whether the bus went to their desired destinations and the driver patiently explained that the flat rate of RM2 entitled them to travel on any City Shuttle bus within a day.

The driver accepted nothing less than RM2.

One woman decided against boarding the bus when she heard about the fare even though the bus went to her desired destination, Jalan Silang.

All passengers are required to pay the fare on board the bus. The driver will give the passenger a ticket, which needs to be retained for the rest of the day to enable one to hop onto another bus.

“There are eight buses serving the No. 105 route. I will try to make sure the waiting time of five minutes is met,” said the driver who did not want to be identified.

The journey from KLCC to Medan Pasar took 20 minutes. There was a slight delay as the next bus arrived at Medan Pasar after 13 minutes due to traffic congestion in the Central Market area.

Some of the new buses are equipped with the public announcement (PA) system.

Rapid KL driver Azmi Umar said:

“All these buses are new and so are the PA system.

“We can now announce the bus route and destinations at bus stops and stations.”

He added that it would be a challenge for him to ensure passengers would only have to wait five minutes for the buses - The Star.

Mixed response to shuttle service

YES, It's true! You only have to wait five minutes to catch the Rapid KL’s City Shuttle service plying the Titiwangsa, Maluri, KLCC, Medan Pasar and KL Sentral hubs in Kuala Lumpur.

And just as promised, the journey from these hubs to the 15 city shuttle routes took only a maximum of 30 minutes so long as the traffic situation was reasonable.

However the only setback was that some commuters felt that the RM2 flat rate was not practical.

Some were also not aware of the service, which started on Friday with a three-day free trial period offered by Rapid KL to enable commuters to familiarise themselves with the new system.

The bus was empty when the StarMetro boarded the 109 shuttle at about 7am at the KL Sentral Hub to get to the Titiwangsahub.

There were about five buses on standby at the KL Sentral hub at that time.

During the fairly smooth ride that took only 25 minutes, no one boarded the bus until it reached the Titiwangsa hub.

Bus driver Mohd Zam Zam informed us that with or without passengers the bus would have moved from the hub after five minutes.

“We are not operating like Metro buses where they will only move if the bus is full,” he said.

“We can only wait for a few minutes tops and than we have to go,'' Mohd Zam Zam said.

At the Titiwangsa hub we boarded another 109 headed back to KL Sentral.

This time Rapid KL driver K. Selvam, who was assisting new driver A. Perumal, was on duty.

Half way along the journey, a commuter by the name of Rohayu Budiono, 25, boarded the bus.

She was heading to her office in Jalan Raja Laut and was taken aback when told that she had to pay RM2 for a daily pass.

Selvam explained the new system to her, saying that the daily pass allowed her to hop on and off Rapid KL buses for the entire day.

“But I only want to go to Raja Laut and that is only 90 sen,” she said, adding that she was not planning to go anywhere else.

Since she was not aware, Selvam only charged her 90 sen and passed her some brochures on Rapid KL’s new system.

At 8.30am we boarded the 110 bus from KL Sentral heading to Medan Pasar.

This route passes Brickfields, KTMB, Central Market, Bangkok Bank, Kota Raya, Post Office, and Telekom.

Once again we were the only passengers on board.

At Central Market, a passenger by the name of Nizam Mohd Yussof boarded the bus. He was heading to KL Sentral to meet friends. he seemed impressed with the new system.

“I didn’t have to wait long and the RM2 rate is reasonable as I can hop onto any bus all day he,” he said, adding that the system was good for shopping and sightseeing.

A passenger called Sulaiman said that the system was not practical for working people.

“It only cost 90 sen to get to work and another 90 sen to get back. The balance 20 sen is such as waste,'' he said.

We hopped onto another 110 bus from Medan Pasar and its driver Abu Bakar informed us that since he started work at 6am only a handful of people boarded his bus.

“It's still new and people are not aware yet. Give some time. It will get better,” he said.

The City Shuttle is the first phase of a total revamp of Rapid KL’s bus network in the Klang Valley.

The buses are equipped with an electronic tracking system that would help maintain their frequency - The Star.