KUALA LUMPUR - The Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) hopes that more private transport providers will work together to help deal with the first- and last-mile system issues in an effort to encourage the public to use public transport more optimally and comprehensively.
It is in line with the full operation of the MRT Putrajaya Line from Kwasa Damansara to Putrajaya beginning tomorrow at 3 pm after being launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.
APAD director-general Datuk Azlan Shah Al Bakri said in an effort to strengthen the country's public transport system, the agency had introduced the bus on demand (BOD) service through a proof of concept (POC) since last year.
He said one of the objectives was to study the effectiveness of the service, assess the impact on existing services (such as stage buses and taxis) and collect information on the level of use of BOD services among the public.
"The BOD service is a booking of bus services through an application that is carried out without a fixed schedule and route and operates in APAD approved zones only.
"It uses small-sized vehicles such as minibuses, coasters or vans and operates between residential houses and public transport stations," he told Bernama.
Azlan Shah said several private companies have shown interest in running BOD services but so far, only two have been approved by APAD.
"The two companies are Asia Mobility Technologies Sdn Bhd and Badan Bas Coach Sdn Bhd which are still in discussions with Prasarana Malaysia Berhad to work together to solve this problem in Puchong and Subang Jaya," he said.
The agency is ready to add this service at other stations in all existing route networks if it is successful, he added.
He said the collaboration was important to support the existing over 1,000 stage bus services in the Klang Valley as well as feeder bus services to rail and bus stations in addition to e-hailing and taxi options.
"For the opening of MRT2, approximately 107 more feeder buses will be provided which are expected to complement the public transport network," he said.
The MRT Putrajaya Line Phase One alignment from Kwasa Damansara to Kampung Batu began serving the public on June 16, 2022.
The MRT Putrajaya Line involves a 57.7 km route from Kwasa Damansara to Putrajaya Sentral, with 36 stations comprising 27 elevated stations and nine underground stations as well as 49 train sets with a total construction cost of RM30.53 billion. - BERNAMA