In an effort to ease congestion at LRT stations during evening peak hours, Rapid KL today announced via Twitter that it has introduced a new express bus service as an alternative for passengers to reach their destinations. The service covers two separate routes which directly connect KLCC and Wangsa Maju stations (designated as route SH01), as well as Pasar Seni and Universiti stations (route SH02).
The service is only operational during weekdays (Monday to Friday), starting from 4:30 pm until 7:30pm. Rapid KL says the frequency of these buses is every 15 minutes, though this is likely to change depending on the traffic conditions along the two routes. Passengers may board the SH01 bus from the KLCC bus stop, while those following the SH02 route may wait for their coach at the Pintu B bus stop at the Pasar Seni LRT station.
In addition, rides for both routes are provided free of charge to passengers. This is in lieu with prime minister Ismail Sabri’s announcement yesterday, where all Rapid KL public transport services will be free for the public throughout a duration of 30 days starting 16 June 2022. The expected fares for either route once the period ends has yet to be determined by the operator.
Nikmati perkhidmatan bas ekspres Rapid KL dari Stesen LRT/ MRT Pasar Seni ke Stesen LRT Universiti atau dari Stesen LRT KLCC ke Stesen LRT Wangsa Maju.
Rujuk poster dibawah untuk maklumat lanjut berkenaan perkhidmatan ini.#RapidKL #RapidBus pic.twitter.com/EnkrUOkMgI
— Ask Rapid KL (@askrapidkl) June 17, 2022
So far, Rapid KL has not revealed any plans to introduce additional routes to this newly launched express bus service. And it makes sense why the public transport operator is prioritising these four LRT stations in particular. Each origin point for either route are often the most crowded during evening peak hours, whereas each end locations are the most travelled to, especially by those working within the Kuala Lumpur area.
Whether or not this would finally resolve the recent congestion issue at Rapid KL’s LRT stations remains to be seen. This is especially given the fact that passengers will have to put up with KL’s evening peak hour traffic jams, which may – ironically – cause congestion at bus stops instead.
(Source: Rapid KL [Twitter])
