The transport ministry has said it will introduce an on-demand transit van service in the Klang Valley to improve public transport interconnectivity, reports The Star. According to transport minister Anthony Loke, the vans will be purchased using part of the RM50 million allocation under Budget 2024 to enhance public transportation.
He added that Prasarana Malaysia will be tasked to oversee the operations of the on-demand transit van service, with further details on implementation to be announced later. The initiative will serve to address first- and last-mile connectivity issues, particularly in areas with limited access to public bus services.
“We understand that not all residential areas have bus routes. The concept is similar to e-hailing services. It has no special routes but we will place it in strategic locations,” said Loke. Such a service is reminiscent of Kumpool, which is an on-demand shuttle service that currently operates in Subang Jaya, Petaling Jaya, Cyberjaya, Melaka and Johor Bahru.
Kumpool works by gathering passenger bookings in real-time and travels a route based on everyone’s pick-up and drop-off stops. In February, Kumpool announced it had partnered with RapidKL to provide an on-demand feeder bus service for selected areas.
On a separate matter, Loke said the transport ministry will present amendments to the Road Transport Act 1887 (Act 33) regarding the offence of driving in bus lanes next year to prevent continued misuse of the lanes by other road users and enhance the lane’s effectiveness.
With the amendments, enforcement personnel will be able to issue compounds based on the offences monitored and recorded on camera. “We are moving towards smart enforcement by using licence plate scanning devices…this will be implemented later,” he said.
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