Single ticket for both LRT lines

KUALA LUMPUR: Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd (Prasarana) is implementing full ticketing integration of the RapidKL Kelana Jaya and Ampang lines on Nov 28.

This is two days earlier than earlier scheduled. Prasarana is the operator of the Klang Valley's two light rail transit (LRT) lines.

With the integrated ticketing system which uses a new MyRapid Pass and tokens for single journeys, commuters would have the comfort of using a single ticket for the entire journey despite needing to change lines, said Prasarana in a statement.

"With a single ticket, commuters need not exit the Masjid Jamek integrated station, and instead just proceed to the other line to continue their journey," the LRT operator added.

The new system was originally scheduled to take place on November 30 but Prasarana decided to take advantage of the Nov 28 public holiday to put the system to a full test.

"So, at 6am on Monday, the old ticketing system will be switched off in total, to make way for the new automatic fare collection (AFC) integrated system," Prasarana's group managing director Datuk Shahril Mokhtar said.

The new system will also allow customers to purchase and re-load their tickets online in future via a website, eliminating the inconvenience of queuing at ticket vending machines and counters.

The programme will continue with the AFC's integration of the RapidKL monorail in the first quarter of 2012, before being extended to the whole system, to cover the RapidKL bus services in the second quarter of 2012.

The current daily ridership for the three rail services is 420,000.

"We aim to push for an average of half a million daily next year," Shahril said.

Installed by a joint venture Malaysian-Spanish company, INDRA-IRIS AFC Consortium (IIAC), the new system cost RM115.2 million.

It comprises new sets of automatic gates, ticket vending machines, passenger service machines, mobile validators, station computer system, central computer system, initialisation machines and personalisation machines.

Contracted to design, manufacture, deliver, install and test the new system, the company is also responsible for implementing the online ticket purchase.

Source: MOLE