Rapid Bus has announced an expansion of the Rapid Penang On-Demand service through a three-month proof of concept (POC) phase starting from May 31. As present, the service – previously known as Demand Responsive Transit (DRT) – has 31 vans operating in six zones, with an average daily ridership of 1,828 commuters, prompting the transport operator to explore an increase in the coverage scope.
Prasarana Malaysia group CEO (operations) Amir Hamdan said the van-based service will expanded with an additional seven zones, which have been identified based on local demand, population density and connectivity with existing bus route service coverage, Bernama reports.
The first, the Alma zone, will see four vans connecting passengers with existing bus routes such as (No.) 708 (Bukit Mertajam–Junjung), 801 (Penang Sentral–Nibong Tebal) and 802 (Bukit Mertajam–Nibong Tebal).
The Bukit Mertajam City zone will operate with three vans in the Seberang Perai Tengah (SPT) town centre to increase first and last mile access, connecting routes 606 (Bukit Mertajam–Kepala Batas), 701 (Bukit Mertajam–Penang Sentral), 702 (Bukit Mertajam–Penang Sentral), 707 (Bukit Mertajam–Taman Pelangi), 708 (Bukit Mertajam–Junjung), 709 (Penang Sentral–Machang Bubuk), 802 (Bukit Mertajam–Nibong Tebal) and CT14 (Bukit Mertajam–Komtar).
Meanwhile, the Bayan Baru zone will have three vans providing access to existing bus services including routes 301 (Weld Quay-Relau), 302 (Weld Quay–Batu Maung), 303 (Weld Quay–Bukit Gedung), 304 (Gurney Promenade–Bukit Gedung), 306 (Hospital–Penang International Airport), 308 (Sungai Nibong–Gertak Sanggul), 401 (Weld Quay Teluk Kumbar), 401E (Weld Quay–Balik Pulau) and CT13 (Bayan Baru–Seberang Jaya).
The Bertam zone will have two vans to connect commuters with routes 601 (Penang Sentral–Kepala Batas), 606 (Bukit Mertajam–Kepala Batas) and 610 (Kepala Batas–Tasek Gelugor) to reduce waiting times for these routes.
The Balik Pulau zone will also have two vans for first and last mile access with existing bus routes, and this will cover routes 401E (Balik Pulau–Weld Quay), 403 (Balik Pulau–Pulau Betong), 404 (Balik Pulau–Pantai Acheh) and 502 (Genting Town, Balik Pulau–Weld Quay).
Finally, the Transkrian or Nibong Tebal zone will have two vans operating specifically in the Transkrian area to connect communities with the Rapid Penang bus network, while three vans will be assigned to the Batu Kawan zone
Amir said that Rapid Bus will monitor demand and usage patterns throughout the three-month trial period to ensure that the service is relevant to meet needs, adding that improvements will be implemented based on evaluation results and passenger feedback.
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Congratulations,
Only 31 vans but daily ridership 1800+
1 van is sending 60 ride daily average..
These Van Booking via App is quite convenient,
Also quite Vip with auto-door and comfortable seats, yet stable ride.
Good move to expand them.
DRT has been given solely to Asia Mobiliti Tech and here is the low down, scummy & corrupted truth of this direct no-tender, no-nego award:
“But before anyone could grasp what the DRT entails, and its connection to Asia Mobiliti Technologies Sdn Bhd, a chorus of calls surfaced for Hannah Yeoh to step down as youth and sports minister.
This was over an alleged conflict of interest involving Yeoh and one of the recipients of the DRT project, Ramachandran Muniandy, who is the CEO of Asia Mobiliti and her husband.
Who is behind Asia Mobiliti?
Ramachandran and Premesh — who is also news portal Malaysiakini’s director and its former CEO — had in 2018 set up the mobility tech company, known as Asia Mobiliti.
“Ultimately, it was a decision made by the Selangor state government in accordance with its own preferences and at its own discretion,”
“In my opinion, either the minister or the husband has to resign from their respective posts, or the company should refuse the project,”
So even if Hannah Yeoh were to resign that is still not enough as the other partner to AMT is Premesh who owns Mkini which is well known to be a PH sponsored propaganda mouthpiece since it was setup. So it goes back that such deals (and many more possibly hidden) continue to benefit those connected with Pakatan. They are no better than the BN they taught us to hate for so many years!
So where is the transparency they shouted?
Where is the anti-corrupted they harangued?
Where is the truth & accountability they promised?
Either rakyat will allow all their promises to masuk longkang or throw PH gomen into that longkang.
Your choice people! Don’t wait for GE16!