PUBLIC transport modes throughout the country will only be allowed to operate from 6am to 10am and 5pm to 10pm, effective tomorrow during the movement control order (MCO) period.

Transport Minister Dr Wee Ka Siong in a statement today said this was in line with the statement by Defence Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob yesterday.

Affected services include stage buses, free service buses such as GoKL and Smart Selangor, all feeder buses, rail services including light rail transit, monorail, mass rapid transit, express rail link and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad.

“However, taxi and e-hailing services may continue to operate as usual in accordance with the guidelines as set previously,” he said.

“It is necessary to take this step to prevent too many people from gathering in one place as they commute on public transport,” he said, adding there was a drop in passengers using public transport in the first five days of the MCO from March 18 up to March 22.

Stage buses, free buses and feeder buses, all have shown a total of 92% decrease in passengers, he said.

He added that commuter services recorded an 89% drop, rail services including LRT, MRT and monorail services saw a decline of 95%, while ERL passengers decreased by 87% during the same period.

However, he said for now, express bus services in Peninsular Malaysia will operate as usual as they were required to provide transport for people involved in providing important or essential services. – Bernama, March 24, 2020.