KTMB may extend service to Bangkok.

KUALA LUMPUR: KTM Bhd is planning to extend its passenger and freight services to Bangkok.

KTMB president Dr Aminuddin Adnan said the company was looking at the prospects of setting up KTM Thailand.

He said KTMB would acquire 40 trains for the service if the plan was implemented.

Twenty of the trains would be used for cargo transportation, while the others would be to carry passengers.

"It would be a big boon to the tourism industry of both countries if Bangkok is connected to major cities in Malaysia," he said at a press conference yesterday.

The estimated cost for each train is RM15 million to RM20 million.

Aminuddin said the service would start in two years if the implementation went according to plan.

He said the expansion of KTMB's cargo services in Thailand would increase its revenue from this segment of its business by 10 to 20 per cent.

The project would also bolster KTMB's "land bridge" business with Thailand.

"There is a high demand for access to our ports by southern Thailand, and our railway system acts as a land bridge," he said.

"We have had this relationship with our clients from south Thailand for a decade. We are now seeking to improve services in this area as well."

Meanwhile, the first of 38 six-car carriages ordered by KTMB would begin service in January.

These carriages have double the carrying capacity of the units currently in use.

Aminuddin said the carriages would be introduced phase by phase. "We should have all 38 carriages running by May next year."

Also, he said, KTMB was in the midst of implementing an automated fare collection system to cut queues at ticket booths during peak hours.

"We are introducing a new SmartCard system, which is also compatible with the monorail and express rail link services."

Earlier, Aminuddin attended the opening of a KTMB-State Railway of Thailand conference by Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) chairman Tan Sri Syed Hamid Albar.



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