KERETAPI TANAH MELAYU

'Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad' ('KTMB') or 'Malayan Railways Limited' is the main rail operator in Peninsular Malaysia.
Formerly known as the Malayan Railway Administration (a corporate sole established under Section 4 of the repealed Railway Ordinance 1948), it came to be known as KTMB after the government-led corporatisation in 1992. However, it remained wholly owned by the federal government. The railway system dates back to the British colonial era, when it was first built to transport tin. Fares are generally reasonable, but the low speed of the intercity trains on the narrow gauge tracks does not usually make them competitive with other modes of transportation.

Railway network

A KTMB Intercity train stopping at a railway station in Kuala Lipis, Pahang.

The gauge railway network in Peninsular Malaysia is controlled by KTM, consists of two main lines and several branch lines.
The ''West Coast line'' runs from Padang Besar on the Malaysia-Thailand Border in Perlis (where it connects with the State Railway of Thailand's network) to ''Singapore'' via ''Butterworth, Penang'' (for connections to ''Penang'') and ''Kuala Lumpur''. It is called the West Coast line because it serves the West Coast states of Peninsular Malaysia.
The ''East Coast line'' runs between Gemas in Negeri Sembilan and Tumpat in Kelantan. Gemas is the rail junction between the West Coast and East Coast lines. Like the West Coast line, it is called the East Coast line because it serves two of Peninsular Malaysia's East Coast states, namely Pahang and Kelantan. In fact, it does not run along the coast at all and only meets the South China Sea when it terminates in Tumpat. It runs through the interior, often through deep jungle, thus earning the nickname "Jungle Railway". Terengganu is the only state in Peninsular Malaysia not served by the railway network.
The total length of the network is 1,699 km.
All of the lines in the KTM network are single-track, except for the section of the main line between Rawang and Seremban, and also the branch line Sentul-Kuala Lumpur-Port Klang, which is now double tracked and electrified to 25kV AC, to accommodate electric commuter trains.
There are several other railway lines which are not under the control of KTMB. This includes the Kuantan - Kerteh line which is owned by Petronas (the national oil company) and the Sabah State Railway line from Tenom to Tanjung Aru (Kota Kinabalu) in Sabah. The Penang Hill Railway also does not come under KTMB's control.

Rolling stock

Following the consolidation of all state railway entities in Malaya, Malayan Railway inherited a fleet of mostly British-made steam locomotives, a variation of locomotives introduced to Malaya since its first railway line went into operation.
Dieselisation in Malaya began immediately after MR's formation with the launch of its first diesel engine, a Class 15 shunter, in 1948. Efforts by MR to fully convert to diesel power between the 1950s and 1970s effectively drove steam locomotives out of service - with whatever left of the fleet massively retired in 1972. KTM drew its diesel rolling stock from a multitude of locomotive companies from England, Japan, Canada, and more recently, Germany and China. The company had also ventured in the use of DMUs (railbus, railcars); none of these services survived.
Electric trains were only introduced in 1995 with the launch of the KTM Komuter commuter service. Consisting of three models of 3-car EMUs, the Komuter EMUs, as of 2007, are the only electrified trains in the KTM rolling stock.

Motive power

The following is a list of locomotives in the KTM fleet - some have since been retired:

★ Diesel locomotives

★
★ 10 Class 15 Diesel Electric shunters (15101 - 15110), manufactured by English Electric's Vulcan Foundry in Lancashire, England, United Kingdom. Brought in in 1948

★
★ 15 Class 17 Diesel Hydraulic shunters (17101 - 17105), manufactured by Kisha Seizo Kaisha, Japan. Brought in in 1964

★
★ 10 Class 18 Diesel Electric shunters (18101 - 18110) , manufactured by Brush HMA, Hull, England, United Kingdom. Brought in in 1978

★
★ 10 Class 19 Diesel Electric shunters (19101 - 19110), manufactured by Hitachi, Japan. Brought in in 1983

★
★ 26 Class 20 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (20101 - 20126), manufactured by English Electric's Vulcan Foundry in Lancashire, England, United Kingdom. Brought in in 1957-1958

★
★ 25 Class 21 Diesel Hydraulic mainline locomotives, manufactured by Kisha Seizo Kaisha, Japan. Brought in in two batches: the first, 21101 - 21115, came in 1965, followed by 21201 - 21210 three years later.

★
★ 40 Class 22 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (22101 - 22140), manufactured by a consortium of English Electric, Associated Electrical Industries (A.E.I.), and Metro-Cammel in Saltley, Birmingham, England, United Kingdom. Brought in in 1971-1972

★
★ 15 Class 23 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (23101 - 23115), manufactured by Hitachi, Japan. Brought in in 1983

★
★ 26 Class 24 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (24101 - 24126), manufactured by Toshiba - Kawasaki, Japan. Brought in in 1987

★
★ 17 Class 25 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives, manufactured by General Motors in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. They came in two batches: 25101 - 25112 in 1990, and another five, 25201 - 25205 in 2002.

★
★ 20 Class 26 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (26101 - 26120), manufactured by GE-Bombardier in Germany. Brought in in 2003 - 2004

★
★ 20 Class 29 Diesel Electric mainline locomotives (29101 -29120), manufactured by DLoco Locomotive and Rolling Stock Co., Dalian, China. Brought in in 2005 - 2006

★ Electric multiple units

★
★ 18 Class 81 EMUs (numbers EMU 01 - EMU 18) manufactured by Jenbacher Transport in Austria-Hungary (1994/1995)

★
★ 22 Class 82 EMUs (numbers EMU 41 - EMU 62) manufactured by Union Carriage and Wagon in South Africa (1996/1997)

★
★ 22 Class 83 EMUs (numbers EMU 19 - EMU 40) manufactured by Hyundai (HPID) (1996/1997)

Passenger coaches

Freight / goods wagons

Maintenance vehicles

KTM Intercity

Main articles: KTM Intercity

The Seremban station serves as both a KTM Komuter stop and a KTM Intercity stop.

'KTM Intercity' (Malay: '''KTM Antarabandar''') is an intercity passenger railway service operated by Keretapi Tanah Melayu within the regions of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. The service is intended to carry patrons between stops serving cities, town and village (depending on regions), its trains currently powered by diesel locomotives.
KTM Intercity services consist of local trains (known also as "mail trains") and express trains; lines along the West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia currently support mostly express trains, while those along the East Coast of Peninsular Malaysia include both mail train and express train services.

KTM Komuter

Main articles: KTM Komuter

A KTM Komuter Class 82 EMU at Subang Jaya station.

'KTM Komuter' is an electrified commuter train service first introduced in 1995, catering especially to commuters in Kuala Lumpur and the surrounding suburban areas. KTMB provides 248 commuter services daily, serving 45 stations along 175 route-kilometres. The network consists of three lines: Rawang-Seremban Line, Sentul-Port Klang Line and the Rawang-Rasa shuttle service. Trains on the two lines run at 15 minutes frequency during peak hours and 20 minutes frequency during off-peak hours. The Rawang-Rasa shuttle services operates at half hour frequency. The KTM Komuter is a popular mode of transportation for commuters working in Kuala Lumpur as they can travel to the city without being stuck in traffic congestion. Coaches are modern and air-conditioned. For those who drive to the stations/halts, "Park & Ride" facilities are provided.

Freight services

Main articles: KTM Freight

KTMB runs 37 freight services daily of which about 70% were concentrated in the northern sector. In line with the strategy to focus more on containerised and long-haul cargoes, KTMB now carries maritime containers, cement and food as main commodities. The freight revenue for 2005 did not change much at RM107.4 million (US$ 31.64 million) for 2005 mainly due to the limited capacity for operating freight trains as a result of the 10-hour line block for the Rawang-Ipoh project as well as the yet to be approved freight tariff revision. The freight tonnage dropped to 4.08 million tonnes due to KTMB's shift in strategy by focusing more on high yield cargo.

Property and advertising

Though considered as non-core businesses, KTMB benefited substantially from property and advertising segments in terms of value creation. In 2005, KTMB derived RM34.28 million (US$ 10.01 million) from property rental and advertising activities. At the same time, the property joint ventures were progressing well in parallel with the progressing economic climate. As regards the Sentul Raya development in Kuala Lumpur, the developer is currently taking promotional actions to enhance the image of Sentul. The Tamarind condominiums were handed over to purchasers in June 2005 and the Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre was launched in September 2005. Meanwhile, the KL Sentral development also in Kuala Lumpur is making good progress in the construction of a 30-storey office tower and Phase II of Suasana Sentral condominiums, whilst the construction of the Marina View Hotel in Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan commenced in September. In order to meet the demand for residential market, KTMB's partner for the Prai Perdana development in Penang is in the process of converting the commercial lots to residential lots.

Subsidiaries

★ 'Multimodal Freight'
Multimodal Freight Sdn. Bhd., which was licensed as a Government-approved container haulier in 1990, achieved the Multimodal Transport Operator status in 1999.

★ 'KTM Distribution'
Since its formation in 1986, KTM Distribution Sdn. Bhd. has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of KTMB. This subsidiary's core business is the distribution of courier and parcel services within Malaysia and Singapore.

★ 'KTMB Car Park'
A wholly-owned subsidiary of KTMB, the company was incorporated in 1994 as KTMB (Brickfields Yard) Sdn. Bhd. and was renamed KTMB (Car Park) Sdn. Bhd. in 1995. The company manages and operates 16 car parks at selected train stations and commuter halts in Peninsular Malaysia. Through its subsidiary, KTMB Parking Pte. Ltd., it operates a car park at the Singapore railway station in Tanjong Pagar.

Modernisation

Since corporatisation of KTMB, a programme of modernisation has been underway. In 1989, it embarked on the double-tracking and electrification of trunk line between Rawang and Seremban and the branch lines between Batu Junction and Sentul, and between Kuala Lumpur and Port Klang which allowed the KTM Komuter service to start running in 1995.^[1] The next major project was the Rawang-Ipoh double tracking and electrification project, which started in 2000, but the project has been repeatedly delayed by contractual disputes and not expected to be ready before 2007. When complete, KTM expects to introduce frequent intercity service (16 trains/day) at 160 km/hour.^[2] In 2002, the Malaysian government proposed the ambitious project of electrifying and double-tracking the entire western line and awarded contracts in 2003. The project was however put on hold by Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi until March 2007 when Deputy Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak announced the project's revival. In April 2007, the government announced that contracts for certain portions of the project had been awarded. In 2007, work also started to electrify and double-track the stretch of track between Sentul and Batu Caves.

Developments

The following is a list of previous, current and planned railway development and upgrading works in Malaysia.

★ Rehabilitation of 327 km-long meter gauge tracks from Paloh to Singapore and from Slim River to the main Seremban line in Malaysia (1988 - 1994) (US$ 70 million)

★ Double tracking of the Rawang-Seremban route (1990 - 1994) (US$ 62 million)

★ Double tracking of the Kuala Lumpur-Port Klang railway route, including spur lines to Subang Jaya and Sentul (1991 - 1994) (US$ 66 million)

★ Widening of railway tunnels near Seremban (1994 - 1995) (US$ 4 million)

★ Track linking Port Klang to Pulau Indah (1997 - 1999) (US$ 4 million)

★ Construction of railway bridges, road over bridges and underpasses along the Rawang-Kajang route (1991 - 1994) (US$ 6 million)

★ Construction of railway bridges, road over bridges and underpasses along the Kajang-Seremban route (1991 - 1994) (US$ 16 million)

★ Construction of railway culverts and box pushing along the Nilai-Seremban route (1994 - 1995) (US$ 4 million)

★ Construction of the Port of Tanjung Pelepas, a rail link in Johor (1999 - 2002) (US$ 121 million)

★ Track works at Kuala Lumpur Sentral station (1999 - 2001) (RM 14.3 million)

Current/future projects

Rawang-Ipoh electrification and double-tracking project

The almost completed new Tanjung Malim railway station, built as part of the Rawang-Ipoh double tracking and electrification project, will be the new terminus for the KTM Komuter network.

The double-tracking and electrification of 179km of the main West Coast line will enable KTMB to run trains at a maximum speed of 160 km/h between Kuala Lumpur and Ipoh. KTMB plans to introduce a rapid intercity service between KL Sentral and Ipoh, running 16 services a day initially and ultimately 32 services a day. This project, which has been beset by problems and delays, is expected to be completed by early 2008 and it will cut down the journey time of KL-Ipoh to 2.5 hours. This project will also enable KTMB to extend its KTM Komuter service to Tanjung Malim.^[2] The infrastructure works component of the project was originally awarded to DRB-Hicom Berhad in 2000^[4] for a value of RM2,579,920,005.00, while Mitsui of Japan was awarded the electrification and signalling component of the project worth RM1.9 billion. The contract between DRB-Hicom and the Malaysian government was signed on 2 April 2001. The original completion date for DRB-Hicom was December 2003.^[5] Four main subcontractors were appointed: Emrail Sdn Bhd for trackwork, Perspec Prime (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd for civil works, IJM Corporation Berhad for the construction of stations and UEM Construction Sdn Bhd for the construction of bridges. The project however suffered problems which caused numerous delays,^[6] resulting in the government terminating the contract with DRB-Hicm and appointing UEM Construction Sdn Bhd, a subsidiary of UEM (Malaysia) Berhad, to take over the project from 1 June 2005.^[7]^[8] At that stage, DRB-Hicom was said to have completed 88% of the work.^[9] DRB-Hicom said one of the main causes of the delays was a dispute over a variation order and losses and expenses with the government. Although there were threats of litigation, the matter was submitted for arbitration and was finally settled in May 2006 with the government paying DRB-Hicom a sum of RM425 million. The company added that it was still in negotiations with the government over issues pertaining to liquidated ascertained damages and release of the performance bond.^[10] Mitsui has also submitted a claim for compensation for being unable to carry out the electrification part of the project because of the delays to civil works but the government has not settled on any payment.^[6]

Ipoh-Padang Besar, Seremban-Johor Baru double-tracking and electrification project

This project was proposed in 2002 as a continuation of the Rawang-Ipoh double-tracking and electrification project. Initially awarded to two consortiums. The 329km "Northern section" between Ipoh and Padang was to be handled by a consortium made up of the Indian Railway Construction Company (Ircon), DRB-Hicom Berhad and Emrail Sdn Bhd while the "Southern section" between Seremban and Johor Bahru was to be handled by a consortium made up of the China Railway Engineering Corporation-China Railway Telecommunications Corporation (CRET), DRB-Hicom Berhad and Hikmat Asia Sdn Bhd. However, on 21 October 2003, a letter of award was issued to a 50:50 joint venture between Gamuda Berhad and Malaysian Mining Corporation Berhad. The change in contractors was based on the fact that Gamuda-MMC lowered the project cost to RM14.448bil, compared with over RM44bil by the two foreign contractors.^[12] Members of the two previous consortiums were invited to be sub-contractors and were given the first right of refusal but the invitation was not taken up.^[13] On 17 December 2003, not long after taking over from Dr Mahathir Mohamad, new Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi announced that the Malaysian government had decided to postpone the project.^[14] The government revived the project in 2007 when on March 16, Deputy Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak announced that the Cabinet Committee on Public Transport had decided to revive the shelved Northern section double tracking project.^[6] On 21 April 2007, Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy confirmed Ircon's participatation in the "revived double-tracking project" and that the company will undertake the Seremban-Gemas portion of the Seremban-Johor Baru.^[16] On 6 June 2007, Gamuda Berhad announced to Bursa Malaysia that it had received a letter from the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister's Department that the Malaysian government had agreed to Gamuda-MMC's proposal to implement the "Northern" section of the project on a private financing initiative basis. It added that negotiations on the formal agreement would begin as soon as possible.^[17] Transport Minister Chan Kong Choy said work on the Northern section will begin by the end of 2007 and is expected to be completed in five years.^[6]

Sentul-Batu Caves Double-Tracking and Electrification

The 7.2 km extension to the Batu Caves branch line started at the end of 2006. The project - which will cost RM515mil - will include electrification, double-tracking and refitting the existing old track, signalling, communications, as well as construction of new stations at Sentul, Batu Cantonment, Batu Village, Taman Wahyu and Batu Caves. Sentul is currently the terminus for KTM Komuter's Sentul-Port Klang Line and the extension will enable the commuter train service to be extended to Batu Caves. Proposed during the 1990s, the project was initially given to DRB-Hicom Berhad and a letter of intent was issued by the Transport Ministry to the company on 13 April 2001.^[19] No letter of award was however issued and there was no movement until 2006 when site possession was given to contractor YTL Corporation Berhad on November 17, 2006. The project is expected to be completed in 30 months' time in May 2009.^[20] The Sentul station is part of the Sentul Raya masterplan development under YTL Corporation Berhad.

Other projects

★ The Government has given its approval in principle for KTMB to implement a double-tracking project from Taiping to Padang Rengas, Perak. This project has been cancelled.

★ Upgrading of Tampin station (2006) and Ipoh station.

★ Upgrading of KTM Komuter stations. See KTM Komuter page for more information.

★ Construction of the 'JB Sentral train station' that links to the Customs, Immigration and Quarantine complex under the Southern Integrated Gateway project which is expected to be completed by September 2007.

★ It is hoped that the construction of the new JB Sentral will enable KTMB to offer frequent Komuter services on the Kulai-Senai-Kempas Baru-JB- Singapore route. This arrangement is expected to be popular among Singaporean passengers taking AirAsia flights from Senai Airport, freight and also Johoreans working in Singapore. The Kulai/Senai to JB stretch needs to be double tracked for the Komuter services to be offered.

★ Kempas Baru railway station will become an interchange between Kulai-Senai-Plentong-Pasir Gudang line and Kulai-Senai-Johor Bahru-Singapore line.

★ A rail transit terminal by the Senai Airport is planned to be contructed 2007-2010. This will link Senai to the new CIQ.

★ A new integrated station named Penang Sentral will be build which will connect KTM Railway, Monorail, Bus and Ferry service in one building at Butterworth.

Board of directors

★ 'Chairman:' Lim Ah Lek

★ 'Managing director:' Mohd Salleh bin Abdullah

★ 'Non-Independent, non-executive directors:' Ahmad bin Haji Hashim (alternate Abdullah Suhaimin bin Md Yunus), Jamilah binti Md Jan (alternate Dr. Ismail bin Jamaluddin), Yusof bin Abd Rahman (alternate Ab Alim bin Zakariah)

★ 'Independent non-executive directors:' Othman bin Abd. Razak, Mani Usilappan, Aida Boey binti Abdullah, Wong Mook Leong, Dr. Kader Sultan bin Md Ismail

Management

★ 'Managing director:' Mohd Salleh bin Abdullah

★ 'Heads of strategic business units' (headed by general managers):

★
★ 'Commuter services:' Zainal Abidin Salleh

★
★ 'Intercity service:' Sarbini Tijan

★
★ 'Freight:' Abdul Razak Malek

References

1. KTM projects introduction
2. Electrified Double Track Project Between Rawang and Ipoh
3. Electrified Double Track Project Between Rawang and Ipoh
4. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Electrified Double Tracking Train Project between Rawang and Ipoh - Infrastructure Package
5. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Electrified Double Tracking Train Project between Rawang and Ipoh - Infrastructure Package
6.
7. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Electrified Double Track Project between Rawang and Ipoh ("Rawang–Ipoh Project")
8. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Article entitled "Ipoh-Rawang Double Tracking Project - UEM Builders to make final presentation"
9. Ipoh-Rawang Rail Project To Be Completed By 2008
10. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Electrified Double Tracking Rail Rawang-Ipoh Project
11.
12. Group's History: History of Gamuda Berhad
13. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Double-tracking Project - First Right of Refusal as Sub-Contractors
14. Statement on the Double Tracking Electrification Rail Project by the Prime Minister of Malaysia
15.
16. India's Ircon To Return To Revived S'ban-Gemas Double Track Project
17. Bursa Malaysia general announcement: Electrified Double Tracking Project
18.
19. Bursa Malaysia reply to query on article entitled: "DRB-HICOM, Emrail on track for more jobs"
20. Landasan Berkembar Elektrik Sentul-Batu Caves (Sentul-Batu Caves double tracking and electrification)

External links

★ Keretapi Tanah Melayu Official Website

★ KTM Modern Locomotives

★ Keretapi.com - Railway Fan website

★ Keretapi Tanah Melayu Railway Fan Club website

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