KUALA LUMPUR: Transport Minister Anthony Loke today said he was disappointed that the culture of better maintenance has not been instilled among transport service providers.
Loke said this after a walkabout at the Pasar Seni LRT and the Kuala Lumpur KTM stations.
In the walkabout, Loke found that one of the newly-installed bi-directional travellators at the 102m-long pedestrian bridge, which links the Pasar Seni LRT station to the Kuala Lumpur KTM station, was not functioning.
“This is why I decided to conduct spot checks. These travellators are brand new but out of two, only one is functioning and it does not show a good image of the country, especially in the early part of Visit Malaysia Year,“ he said.
Loke also found that out of four KTM ticketing machines, only one could be used.
“It’s not only the minister who must come down and check services. CEOs of government government-linked companies (GLCs) related to the transport sector must make an effort to check more often the services provided by their respective companies.
“I want the culture of better maintenance to be instilled among our service providers and let me make it clear that I am not happy with the current situation especially when we are expecting to welcome loads of tourists to the country this year,” he added.
Loke explained that the government has spent billions on infrastructure but if the services are sub-par, then the responsibility is on the GLCs to step up.
“There’s no point in having big projects and spending billions of ringgit to upgrade tracks and stations, but in terms of services to the public, we’re far behind.
“Ticketing systems must be more convenient and reliable. We don’t want a situation where a traveller comes to the station but finds it difficult to purchase a ticket,” he added.
