Bane of the sardine-packed trains

** credit to The Star

THE irregular schedules of the KTM Komuter train service coupled with huge commuter crowds are surely the bane of many who depend on the train service for transport. The trains often do not arrive on time and the maddening crowds cause much irritation and unhappiness among the passengers, with tempers occasionally flaring.

Packed like sardines: Scenes like this are normal during rush hour.

The KL Sentral KTM Komuter terminal is usually a hive of activity at any time of the day, and is packed at peak hours in the morning and evening when people travel to and from work. One such commuter is Azizah Ismail, a 23-year-old data coordinator from Cheras. “I use the train to go to my office at Mid Valley every day from the Bank Negara stop. Travelling to the office is not a problem because my shift starts at 10.30am, but I have to leave my house at 8am to give myself ample time to get to work,” Azizah said. “If I don’t have to wait for the train, I can arrive at my office within 40 minutes,” she said. “Going home is a nightmare because I have to wait more than an hour for the train. Sometimes, the trains are so packed that I have to wait for the third train to arrive before I can go home,” Azizah said.

Disorderly conduct: When the doors open, passengers often rush in, giving no opportunity for those inside to alight.

“It’s frustrating to have to wait so long because, at the end of the day, everyone is tired and just wants to go home,” she said. Besides long waiting periods, Azizah and her friends are also not happy with the irregular train schedules. As for the recently upgraded Bank Negara station, Azizah said although the roof offered better protection from rain, the area was still warm due to its open air structure.

During the rush-hour period at the KL Sentral terminal, an announcement of a delay with one or more of the KTM Commuter train services is almost a norm. To regular passengers, hearing such announcements is nothing surprising, although they do sigh with frustration and resignation at another long and uncomfortable wait. As the train stops along the platform, the waiting passengers rush to get inside the coaches, without bothering to let the passengers inside get out first. The situation almost borders on chaos when the train doors start closing with people packed like sardines inside.

Regular train user Norzarina Ghazali, 27, said she was used to the train delays. “I take the train from Kajang to go to work in Kuala Lumpur. “If there is no delay, I can reach home within 45 minutes but that has only happened once this week,” she said. “The longest have waited was two hours because of cancellation of the train service. Most of the times, a breakdown or the doors getting jammed cause the delays,” Norzarina said. “As far as the train stations are concerned, the newly-renovated Bank Negara station is much better and more equipped with facilities like toilets and lifts,” she said.

U. Raj and U. Kumar, both 19, and S. Komana, 20, are students at the Nilai International University College in Negri Sembilan. They use the train service every weekend to return to their hometown Klang. “The KL Sentral terminal is usually packed after 1pm onwards on weekends with shoppers,” Komana said. “We sometimes have to wait until two or three trains have passed before we can board one. There have been times when train delays caused us to miss classes,” she said. “It once took me four hours just to go from KL Sentral to Klang,” Kumar said. Komana said having escalators or lifts at each KTM Komuter station would greatly improve passengers’ mobility and make it easier for those who have large bags. “I have seen the KTM workers helping senior citizens whenever they need help climbing up and down the stairs,” Kumar said.

One 71-year-old woman, who declined to be named, said KTM Komuter should provide facilities like an escalator at each of its stops to make them more accessible for senior citizens and the disabled. “It’s not easy for us to climb up and down the stairs and an escalator will make it easier for us to move about,” the Sri Petaling resident said. Installing escalators at stops like Bandar Tasik Selatan will benefit commuters as the station is an interchange for the Express Rail Link and the Ampang Rail Line (previously known as STAR LRT).

---> I have to commute everyday and I am very understand the situation. Very stressful.