Gemas-Johor Bahru electrified double-tracking project is a boost for the national rail system – Johor MB

Having conquered the north, Keretapi Tanah Melayu‘s (KTM) Electric Train Service (ETS) now goes as far south as Segamat, thanks to the Gemas-Johor Bahru electrified double-tracking project‘s progress.

Not long more to reach JB – Labis station will begin serving the ETS as soon as next month, followed by Kluang in May and finally, the Johorean capital in September.

Johor menteri besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi is naturally pleased by the ETS’ debut in Johor, deeming the electrified double-tracking project a boost for the national rail system, especially in the south, Bernama reports.

“This project is part of the infrastructure transformation in Johor. May this service bring a big benefit to the people and the state and make us more competitive and developed,” he said on Facebook recently.

“With the double tracks, the journey from KL Sentral to JB Sentral will only take 3 hours and 30 minutes, making it a faster, comfortable and efficient option. The 192-km track crosses Segamat, Kluang, Kulai and Johor Bahru before ending at JB Sentral. With a speed of up to 160 km/h, this electric train can make 22 trips a day with 346 seats per train,” he added.

Once JB is fully electrified and double-tracked, where passenger services are concerned, KTM’s entire West Coast Line (the long side of the Y-shaped network) will largely be the domain of ETS and Komuter electric multiple units (EMU).

Loco-hauled expresses will soon become a thing of the past – for now confined to the scenic and yet-to-be-electrified East Coast Line, where local trains pulled by rickety-but-characterful diesel engines have already made way for diesel multiple units (DMU). Anyone old enough to remember those evocatively-named trains, like Sinaran Pagi, Senandung Malam, Senandung Langkawi and Ekspres Wau? It’s all EP9272, EG9022, EX9004 (etc) now.

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