Kelana Jaya line

Kelana Jaya Line
File:Putra LRT train.jpg
Overview
Locale	Kelana Jaya, Petaling Jaya, KL Sentral, KLCC, Setiawangsa, Wangsa Maju and Gombak
Transit type	Light Rail Transit
Number of lines	1
Number of stations	24 (1 unused)
Operation
Began operation	1998
Operator(s)	Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad (SPNB)
Technical
System length	29 km

Kelana Jaya line route map

The Kelana Jaya Line is one of three lines in Kuala Lumpur's light rapid transit (LRT) network. The other two lines are the Ampang Line and Sri Petaling Line. All three are operated by Rangkaian Pengangkutan Integrasi Deras Sdn Bhd (Rapid KL).

Besides the LRT system, the other rail-based public transport modes in Kuala Lumpur include the KL Monorail, KTM Komuter, KLIA Ekspres and KLIA Transit.

The Kelana Jaya Line is the new name for Kuala Lumpur's Putra light rail transit (LRT) system. The line was locally known as Putra LRT or simply Putra (which stood for Projek Usahasama Transit Ringan Automatik Sdn Bhd, the company which developed and operated it).

The system, which is 29 km long, is the third longest fully-automated driverless metro system in the world, after the SkyTrain in Vancouver and the VAL in Lille, France.

Stations

Abbr.	Station name	Platform	Interchange
TMP	Terminal Putra	island
TAM	Taman Melati	side
WGM	Wangsa Maju	island
SRI	Sri Rampai	side;unused
STW	Setiawangsa	island
JLT	Jelatek	side
DKM	Dato' Keramat	side
DAM	Damai	island
AMP	Ampang Park	island, underground
KLC	KLCC	island, underground
KBU	Kampung Baru	island, underground
DWI	Dang Wangi	island, underground	to KL Monorail
MJD	Masjid Jamek	island, underground	to Ampang Line, Sri Petaling Line
PSR	Pasar Seni	island
KLS	KL Sentral	side	to KLIA Ekspres, KLIA Transit, KL Monorail, KTM Komuter and KTM intercity trains
BSR	Bangsar	side
ABH	Abdullah Hukum	side
KER	Kerinchi	side
UNI	Universiti	island
TJA	Taman Jaya	side
ASJ	Asia Jaya	island
TMP	Taman Paramount	side
TBH	Taman Bahagia	side
KLJ	Kelana Jaya	island
SBD	Subang Depot	no passenger service

The stations are given in a north-south direction. Stations with island platforms allow easy interchange between north-bound and south-bound trains without requiring one to walk down/up to the concourse level. The Sri Rampai station is still closed, since the project it is supposed to serve has been halted.

The system

KLCC Station is an underground station with platform screen doors installed.

The system makes use of Advanced Rapid Transit (Mark II) technology from Bombardier, which utilises linear motors.

Platform gap

The Kelana Jaya Line stations are designed to have platform gaps smaller than about 5cm to allow easy access for the disabled and wheel chair users. They are able to achieve this due to the following reasons:

1. Tracks are non-ballasted, hence less rail and train movements
2. Trains have direct rubber suspension, hence less train body movements
3. Trains do not rapidly run thru stations
4. Stations have straight platforms.

Criticisms

• Technical failures

Due to the system being driverless and almost fully computerised, there have been numerous occasions when systems failure have led to services being severly affected and at worse the whole line being closed. For example, the 24 July 2006 and 6 October 2006 incidents.

• Low capacity

Although the system has been built to accommodate more carriages, currently only two carriages make the standard configuration of the train sets. This is notable given that trains are often always packed and that the Kelana Jaya Line is the most heavily used rail transport system in the Klang Valley.

• Route alignment

The Kelana Jaya Line has been criticised for being aligned to stop at not so ideal places, although the system passes through many places of interest. For example, the rarely used Abdullah Hukum station at Jalan Bangsar is near the busy Mid Valley development, it is separated by a squarter settlement and the Klang River. Many have criticised the abilities of the planners in choosing the align the route and place the system at Abdullah Hukum as opposed to having it pass and stop at Mid Valley, as both the LRT and Mid Valley development were planned and constructed at the same period.

The Kelana Jaya Line at its western end terminates public services at Kelana Jaya although it extends a little further into Lembah Subang, near the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport where maintainence facilities are located. Many quarters have questioned why the line did not start in Subang Jaya, a massive township just a few kilometres south of Lembah Subang.

• Physical integration

Like every other mode of rail transport in Kuala Lumpur, physical integration between different lines is poor. Most notably is the Masjid Jamek interchange where the Kelana Jaya Line meets the Ampang and Sri Petaling Lines.

Extensions

File:MyLRTnew.jpg

Proposed rail lines taken from KL Structure Plan 2020 website

On 29 August 2006, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Mohd Najib Abdul Razak announced that the western end of the Kelana Jaya Line would be extended to the suburbs of Bandar Sunway, Subang Jaya and UEP Subang Jaya (USJ), which are located to the south-west of Kuala Lumpur. The extension will be part of a 10bil ringgit plan to expand Kuala Lumpur's public transport network.

The expansion plan will also see the Sri Petaling Line extended to the suburb of Puchong, also to the south-west of Kuala Lumpur. The plan also involved the construction of an entirely new line from Kota Damansara to the west of the city, to Cheras which lies to the south-east of Kuala Lumpur.

No details of the alignment of the extensions and the new line nor locations of new stations were revealed.

Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad signed an agreement on 13 October 2006 with a Bombardier and a Malaysian company joint venture for the purchase of 22 light rail vehicle sets with an option for another 13 for RM1.2 billion. The 22 vehicles will have four cars each and will boost the carrying capacity of the fleet by 1,500 people. The 22 sets will be delivered in 2008.

History

• 15 February 1994 - Projek Usahasama Transit Ringan Automatik (Putra LRT) was incorporated.
• 1 September 1998 - Section 1 from Subang Depot to Pasar Seni commenced operation.
• 1 June 1999 - Entire Putra LRT system opened as Section 2 from Pasar Seni to Terminal Putra commenced operation. The new section included Malaysia's first underground railway.
• 1 September 2002 - Putra LRT comes under management of Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad and renamed Putraline under the first phase of the restructuring of Kuala Lumpur's public transport system. SPNB also takes over Star LRT and is renamed Starline.
• November 2004 - Operational aspects of the two LRT systems is transferred to the newly-formed, government-owned Rapid KL under the second phase of the restructuring process. Ownership of their assets remain with SPNB.
• July 2005 - Name changed from Putraline to Kelana Jaya Line. Signage to be changed by 2006.
• 24 July 2006 - Failure of the back-up computer to kick-in caused the system to stop functioning during the evening rush hour. Passengers were trapped in trains and some had to force open doors to get out.
• 29 August 2006 - Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak announces that the Kelana Jaya Line will be extended from Lembah Subang to Subang Jaya and USJ.
• 6 October 2006 - A "technical problem" caused a train to stall along the tracks between Dato Keramat and Damai stations at 7am, causing a shut-down of the Masjid Jamek-Terminal Putra stretch of the line. Normal service restored at 5pm.
• 13 October 2006 - Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad signs an agreement with Bombardier-Hartasuma joint venture for the purchase of 22 four-car train sets for the Kelana Jaya Line with an option to purchase an additional 13 train sets for RM1.2 billion. Trains to be delivered in 2008.

See also

• Malaysian Railway System
• Public transport in Kuala Lumpur
• KL Sentral
• Ampang Line
• Sri Petaling Line
• KL Monorail
• KTM Komuter.
• KLIA Ekspres
• KLIA Transit
• List of rapid transit systems

External links

• Rapid KL
• Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad
• Interactive Map of Kelana Jaya to KL Sentral Putra line (Internet Explorer only)