2 November 2015
PRASARANA CORRECTS INEQUITABLE FARES STRUCTURE FOR LRT AND MONORAIL -Introduces Fare Differentiation Between Cash And Cashless To Encourage Savings
In correcting the inequitable fares structure that have plagued the LRT Kelana Jaya Line, LRT Ampang Line, and the KL Monorail Line for close to two decades, Prasarana Malaysia Berhad (Prasarana) today announces the new fares structure for the three services and introduces fare differentiation between Cash and Cashless modes of payment to encourage savings in the new fares structure.
Announcing the new fares structure at a media briefing in Kuala Lumpur, Prasarana’s President and Group Chief Executive Officer Dato’ Azmi Abdul Aziz said the current fares structure was based on the different rates between stations in the Central Business Districts and non-Central Business Districts for the Kelana Jaya Line whilst the Ampang Line was based on the number of stations travelled, and the KL Monorail Line on the distance travelled.
“For a more equitable and consistent fares structure, the current structure would be realigned to the distance-based fare structure, similar with the practice of other rail operators globally.
“Under the new fares structure, passenger would be charged a flag fall plus the actual distance travelled multiplied by the corresponding rate that decreases the further the passenger travels,” Azmi said.
To ensure that passenger experience savings from the rationalisation of LRT and monorail fares structure, the government has requested Prasarana to introduce the fare differentiation mechanism in which passengers travelling on cashless payment mode would enjoy discounts on the distance rates compared with those who purchase tokens by cash.
“As an added incentive, passengers who opt for “MyRapid Smart 7 Weekly” or “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly” would enjoy discounts of between 18 and 26 percent, and 20 and 35 percent respectively on the distance rate compared with cash,” Azmi explained.
With the introduction of the new fares structure, passengers travelling on certain sectors would pay lower or similar fares compared to what they are paying today.
“For example, passengers travelling between Chan Sow Lin and PWTC would pay RM2.30 in cash compared with RM2.40 today. They would only pay RM1.90 for a further discount of 40 sen from the new cash fare when travelling with “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly”.
“Passengers travelling between Imbi and Dato’ Keramat would pay only RM3.40 via cash compared with the current fare of RM4.40. They would only pay RM2.80 when travelling with “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly”,” said Azmi.
Passengers travelling between KL Sentral (Kelana Jaya Line) and KLCC, meanwhile, would need to pay RM2.40, an additional 80 sen in cash compared with RM1.60 today. However, they would only pay additional 40 sen when travelling with “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly” or 50 sen more when travelling with “MyRapid Smart 7 Weekly”.
“We strongly encourage passengers, particularly our daily commuters, to purchase either “MyRapid Smart 7 Weekly” or “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly”, depending on their travel patterns, to enjoy greater savings,” Azmi said.
He added that the new fare structure was more realistic and much needed to streamline the fares for LRT and monorail services which have not been adjusted upwards for some 13 years in spite of rising cost over the years.
Azmi said the new fares structure would come into effect on 2 December 2015 and commuters could begin purchasing “MyRapid Smart 7 Weekly” and “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly” at a nominal premium of RM2.50 and RM10.00 respectively from the Rapid KL Customer Service Offices at LRT and monorail stations beginning 15 November or when their existing passes expire.
“One of the key advantages of the new “MyRapid Smart 7 Weekly” and “MyRapid Smart 30 Monthly” is that commuters could carry forward the balances of their purse value to the next month compared to the current Monthly Pass where under-utilised trips will expire along with the pass,” Azmi said.
Azmi added that senior citizens, people with disabilities, and students would continue to enjoy 50 per cent discounts from the cash rates.
Original Source: thesundaily