Launch of Bus Iskandar Malaysia

01 February 2010, By IRDA

Monday, 1st Feb - The people in Iskandar Malaysia can now enjoy improved accessibility and mobility with the injection of some 34 buses to ply 16 previously un-serviced routes here. Social routes are defined as those that are not served by commercial services.

The buses, known as Bus Iskandar Malaysia, were launched by Johor Menteri Besar Dato’ Haji Abdul Ghani Othman at the Kota Iskandar Terminal here yesterday.

Also present at the launch were the Iskandar Malaysia Transport Steering Committee (IMTSC) chairman Dato’ Haji Abdul Latiff Yusof, Pasukan Pengangkutan Awam Iskandar Malaysia (PAIM) project manager Mohd Gadaffie Abdul Aziz and Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) Chief Executive Ismail Ibrahim.

In his speech, Abdul Ghani said with the injection, the public can look forward to enjoy a safer, more comfortable and conveniently scheduled bus services to serve their needs and expectations at an affordable cost.

“With this new implementation, the residents within the targeted areas and eventually the whole of Iskandar Malaysia will enjoy better, more efficient connectivity,”

“The bus service is just one of the initiatives we are implementing under the overall Iskandar Malaysia Transportation Masterplan and there is so much more in the pipeline for the Rakyat,” he said.

Abdul Ghani, who is also Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) co-chairman, added with the new public transport initiatives, it is projected that the percentage of public transport users would increase to 50% by 2025.

Meanwhile Abdul Latiff said all the Bus Iskandar Malaysia would be fitted with a Global Positioning System (GPS) device and Closed Circuit Televisions (CCTV) to enable the bus operators to monitor the buses and the routes they service.

“The information gathered from the systems will be fed into monitoring centres stationed at each bus depot. These monitoring centres are tasked to analyse the data and use the information gathered to further improve the services provided and iron out any gaps,” he said.

Abdul Latiff added all bus operators involved were guided by a Safety and Environmental Code of Practice to ensure efficiency in management, quality service and safety of commuters. Currently more enhancements are being reviewed to further improve the bus services, he said.

“We are also looking at other supporting initiatives such as programmes to develop public transport operators’ and drivers’ competency and also introducing a maintenance culture for public service vehicles as well as terminals and bus stops. This will be benchmarked against best practices in the region,” said Abdul Latiff.

Spearheaded by IMTSC and PAIM, the bus injection is an initiative implemented in collaboration with the Economic Planning Unit of Johor (UPENJ), 5 local councils, IRDA, and other government agencies such as Road Safety Department (JKJR), Road Works Department (JKR), Road Transport Department (JPJ), Commercial Vehicle Licensing Board (CVLB) and Royal Malaysian Police (PDRM) to enhance the current public transport system.

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About IRDA
The Iskandar Regional Development Authority (IRDA) is the regulatory authority mandated to plan, promote and facilitate the development of Iskandar Malaysia into a strong and sustainable metropolis of international standing, where living, working, business and leisure converge seamlessly.
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