KUALA LUMPUR – A number of commuters are insisting that public transportation, such as the KL Monorail and Light Rail Transit (LRT), are indeed packed during rush hour in the movement control order (MCO) period, despite operator Prasarana Malaysia Bhd issuing a strong denial on the matter yesterday.
The commuters aired their grievances in the comments section of a Facebook post by Prasarana’s Rapid KL, which refuted a report by The Vibes on crowded monorail cars.
One such commuter was Nurul Fairose Miza, who said: "Don't lie... it makes God angry (as the) LRT is always full at peak hours... like it is not MCO, (I’ve) been using LRT for (a) few year(s), MCO 2.0 full as usual."
She said social distancing was not seen being practised or enforced throughout her entire journey from Gombak to Kelana Jaya, and the problem is worse when trains are delayed.
In its report yesterday, The Vibes highlighted photos of a KL Monorail carriage filled to the brim during rush hour, in breach of standard operating procedures (SOPs) under the reinstated MCO.
In a statement later the same day, Prasarana called the report by The Vibes “confusing”, as the photos of the crowded monorail car are undated.
Prasarana expressed doubt that the picture was taken during MCO 2.0, which started on January 13.
It also advised the media to check on information they receive in advance for veracity.
"We are ready to provide access to the media to conduct their own survey at stations so that they can see the real situation," the company had said.
Rapid KL had also published the denial in a Facebook post, which was accompanied by several photographs showing non-crowded monorail cars.
However, another commuter, Ronald W. Binati, said: "Admin kena ambik gambar kul 5pm keatas. Stesen yg ramai org Raja Chulan, Bukit Bintang dan Hang Tuah (Admin must take photographs after 5pm. The stations that are full are Raja Chulan, Bukit Bintang and Hang Tuah)."
Lina Sulaiman added that: "Waktu puncak pagi dan petang, ramai org dalam train sampai berdiri rapat dalam lrt. Sepatutnya jarak semeter. (In the morning and evening peak times, there are many people in trains standing close to each other in the LRT. They should be 1m apart)."
Joining in the chorus was Nur Hafizah, who said the images of a sparsely occupied coach posted by Rapid KL seemed as though they were taken at 10am on a weekend, and not during rush hour.
Responding to the photographs posted by Rapid KL, Louis Peter Low asked the administrator of the Facebook page to enable users to upload their own pictures in the comments section.
Other users, such as Jones Li, suggested Rapid KL cease using its two-coach trains and use its four-coach trains instead.
"Thank you for the suggestion. We will share this with the operations for consideration," Rapid KL said in response.
Khufyatun Ardani voiced similar sentiments, saying: "2 coach trains are the problem during rush hour because many want to go home, that is why they are full."
In response, Rapid KL urged commuters to wait for the next train if coaches are too full. – The Vibes, January 20, 2021
