Tuesday, March 21, 2006

KL's city rail...

Choo, Choo... Chug, Chug, Chug..


Ah, talking about the grouses of public transport. Let's go through the rail system.

Ok, first and foremost, Putra has not enough carriages! During the peak hours, we can see people pressing on the glasses windows on the doors, hanging on to others (or not holding anything at all)... it looks like they've all been swept into the train with a mighty whack from a mighty broom. This is especially bad after the train had passed the KLCC station. We need more carriages, something like the number STAR has. Talking about STAR, most of the time the drivers mumble through their mics for the station alert. With all the noise from the train, how do they expect us to hear them? To make things more difficult, we can't see the name of the station clearly at night because the inside of the train is brighter than the outside. One more irritating thing, sometimes or often, the air conditioning doesn't work! And it happens during peak hours (I get it in the afternoon) when everyone is pressing against each other, coming back from work, sweating and smelling and breathing heavily in the moving gas chamber-like prison. The management should check their trains everyday. Why should we pay and support the service when we are taken for granted?

Ok, not all problems arise from the management, mind you. I like the service because of the timing of the LRT trains. It's of course not as frequent all the time as one would like, but it's fine. Most importantly, it arrives on time. This is what the public should be ashamed about. The stations frequently announce that people must let others disembark first before boarding. Easier said than done. Doors open and the hullabaloo starts. Shoving, grumbling, grunting, you name it. It's like that's the only train on the track for miles and we can't miss it. People on the train, don't smirk yet. You guys take your time coming out of the train. Perhaps you own the train, do you? How can people get on the train if you don't come out? Putra is automatic, it doesn't wait and I don't think STAR's drivers would like to be delayed too long. Whose fault is it when people get hurt? Everybody's.

KTM Commuter, for goodness sake, clean up! Cockroaches live in the carriages! What on earth.... sigh... I rest my case. Also, be punctual! How do you explain the 45 minute waiting time for a train from Subang Jaya to KL Sentral? Worry about the costs? Don't. There are more people taking the trains than you think. Keep us happy, and we'll keep you happy. It's 2 way.

Ah, this is the unsolved mystery of KL:
WHY ON EARTH DOES THE MONORAIL STOP SHORT OF GOING INTO KL SENTRAL???

2 comments:

ayjk said...

The unsolved question is elementary, my dear Jien Han.

CErtain authorities did not get enough kickback money. Hence, they "couldn't" link the Monorail station into KL Sentral. Who are those certain authorities..it's for the guessing.

Atropos said...

You mean that wasn't obvious? :D

Ain't a mystery to us. Mystery to tourists - maybe. :D