Malaysia

More than half of Hari Raya ETS tickets snapped up as festive rail demand surges

Strong advance sales for electric train services ahead of Hari Raya Aidilfitri have prompted the Transport Ministry to signal that additional tickets will only be released once the current allocation is fully sold

Updated 7 months ago · Published on 10 Feb 2026 2:00PM

More than half of Hari Raya ETS tickets snapped up as festive rail demand surges
Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad ramps up capacity using new train sets and extended operating hours - February 10, 2026

MORE than half of the electric train service (ETS) tickets made available for the upcoming Hari Raya Aidilfitri travel period have already been sold, reflecting robust festive demand across the rail network.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke said 118,823 seats, or 53 per cent of the total 224,196 seats offered, had been taken up as of today. The tickets cover travel across all ETS sectors between March 13 and March 29, 2026.

He said any announcement on additional tickets for the Hari Raya period would only be made once the existing allocation is fully exhausted.

Loke disclosed the figures during a question-and-answer session in the Dewan Rakyat, in response to a query from Howard Lee (PH-Ipoh Timor) on ticket sales and supplementary services for ETS and the Ekspres Timuran ahead of the festive seasons.

Turning to preparations for Chinese New Year, Loke said KTMB is providing 46,404 additional ETS tickets for the period, representing a 426 per cent increase compared with the 8,820 extra tickets offered last year.

“The increase in 2026 is due to the addition of seven ETS3 sets and ETS operations running nearly 24 hours throughout the festive period,” he said.

Loke added that demand for ETS travel during Chinese New Year had been exceptionally strong, with all 131,879 ETS seats offered for journeys between Feb 13 and Feb 22 already sold out. He said KTMB had further optimised its assets to release another 26,460 tickets, which were also fully taken up.

“I am pleased to announce that another 12,600 additional tickets for the KL Sentral-JB Sentral-KL Sentral sector for the Feb 13 to Feb 22 period will go on sale at 12.15am on Feb 11.

“These tickets utilise the seventh ETS3 set, which was recently approved,” he said.

Loke also announced the introduction of the EMU Plus service for the first time during the Chinese New Year period.

“KTMB has mobilised six-car sets for the KL Sentral-Ipoh-KL Sentral route, allowing for 24 additional trips during the season,” he said.

The EMU Plus service will operate from Feb 13 to Feb 15 and from Feb 20 to Feb 22, 2026. According to Loke, the service adds 7,344 seats to the network, of which 3,157 seats, or 43 per cent, had been sold as of Feb 10. - February 10, 2026

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