KUALA LUMPUR: The daily usage of public transport provided by Prasarana Malaysia Berhad (Prasarana) has increased consistently following the Covid-19 pandemic, with an average of 1.1 million passengers recorded per day as of yesterday (November 30).
Prasarana issued a statement informing that of the total, Rapid Rail Sdn Bhd (Rapid Rail) services which include LRT, MRT and Monorail recorded an average daily usage rate of 835,119 passengers, while the average usage of Rapid Bus Sdn Bhd (Rapid Bus) services was 258,710.
The highest daily usage figure was 1,200,433, recorded on November 22 last year.
"These numbers represent the highest number of daily usage rates of services operated by Prasarana recorded since the country was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
"At the beginning of 2020, the average number of passengers using Prasarana services was approximately 1.2 million people per day," read the statement.
Prasarana said the consistent increase in daily usage rate was partly driven by its ongoing initiative with Rapid Rail and Rapid Bus to improve the overall user experience, including service availability and the condition of its facilities.
As for rail services, Prasarana said Rapid Rail was working to ensure smooth and uninterrupted journeys for passengers on all its operating routes.
It said Rapid Rail had also begun operating four new trains for the Kelana Jaya LRT line under the KLAV27 (Kuala Lumpur Additional Vehicle) project since last September, and that the route was currently operating with an average of 48 trains in three-minute intervals.
The use of MRT Putrajaya Line and Kajang Line also showed encouragement, where the MRT Putrajaya Line was used by an average of 127,872 commuters last November, compared to 122,720 previously.
The Kajang Line MRT also recorded an increase in average daily usage from 219,576 commuters in October to 225,705 last month, and the number is expected to increase further towards the beginning of next year when the number of trains is increased to 36 at a frequency of four minutes.
As for bus services, it said Rapid Bus expects as many as 1,000 buses to operate daily by the end of this year, an increase from the existing 762 buses, in line with the increasing demand for bus services around the Klang Valley.
The statement added that the pilot bus lane project on Jalan Ampang (from Jalan Rhu to the Jalan Tun Razak intersection) which began on July 3 had recorded a 15 per cent increase in the number of users in the corridor.
Meanwhile, Prasarana said 99 per cent of facilities and public amenities at the stations including elevators and escalators were currently operating normally.
However, Prasarana said it was committed to continuously improving all rail and bus services as well as public facilities under its management for the convenience and comfort of users and to encourage the use of public transport.
The move is in line with the public transport agenda which targets the use of public transport to hit 40 per cent by 2030, according to the statement. — BERNAMA