KUALA LUMPUR – Do free rides mean inefficient service? This appears to be the complaint of those who had hoped to celebrate Thaipusam at Batu Caves but were instead stranded at train stations.
Prolonged waits and long queues to board Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) trains, plus a power outage, resulted in delays of over 30 minutes that affected five stations – Sentul, Batu Kentomen, Kg Batu, Taman Wahyu, and Batu Caves.
KTM had announced this on X at 10.47pm last night, which led to Thaipusam devotees questioning the lack of alternatives provided. Many had taken advantage of the free KTM commuter rides that were offered from midnight last night to 11.59pm tonight in conjunction with Thaipusam.
On X , a user named Megganathan shared a photo of long queues of people waiting to board the train at Sentul, adding that the poor service was due to technical issues.
There was no access to bus services to Batu Caves, he added, and the waiting time was 20 to 30 minutes for e-hailing services.
Nearly two hours after KTM’s first announcement, the company said at 12.48am that trains on the Batu Caves-Sentul-Batu Caves route had resumed operations.
However, the trains involved were still experiencing delays from their original schedules, it added.
This led Thaipusam devotees to question why KTM did not have any contingency plans if it was aware of technical issues.
A TikTok user named Manian Krishnan expressed his frustration on the social media platform, saying many people were left stranded, despite the promise of a free train service to Batu Caves.
@mervin_manian Penganut Hindu terkandas di KTM SENTUL .Ini ke Malaysia Madani 🤮🤮🤮
♬ original sound – Manian Krishnan
“You said going to Batu Caves would be free, but we are all stranded in Sentul (station). Look at all the Indians waiting at the side,” he said in his video, addressing Transport Minister Anthony Loke.
In another video, Manian claimed that the devotees were given reasons for the delay, such as technical issues and a tree branch falling onto the tracks, presumably by station officers.
Meanwhile, user Tarrsini Maginderan described her Thaipusam travel experience this year as traumatic due to large crowds of people bottlenecked at the Batu Caves station gate.
In her TikTok video, she showed station officers only allowing a trickle of devotees through the gate – a few at the time – while the rest of the crowd grew larger.
Tarrsini acknowledged that officers must adhere to safety measures but also urged them to be more adaptable in such situations to cool temperatures.
@tarrsinispeaks @ktmberhad #Thaipusam2024 #ktmbatucaves #ktmissues #fyp #fypシ゚viral #fyppppppppppppppppppppppp ♬ original sound – Tarrsini Maginderan
Similarly, X user @KammelAlFarth commented that devotees were forced to stand for hours while waiting for their train, adding that this was difficult for the elderly.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke had announced the free KTM Kommuter rides in conjunction with Thaipusam.
He also announced 33 additional rail services that would run beyond their usual operating hours for the Batu Caves-Pulau Serbang-Batu Caves routes. – January 25, 2024
