Airport public transport blues
Senai International Airport received 101,927 passengers last year, almost a fivefold increase from 2011.
The volume is expected to increase further as Indonesian airline Citilink is expected to commence its operations soon, connecting Senai with four Indonesian cities -- Bandung, Surabaya, Denpasar and Medan.
The hike in passenger volume is good news for the state tourism industry. But, how prepared are we to handle such a large number of visitors?
Using the quantity and quality of public transport to and from the airport as the benchmark, we can get a rough picture of how prepared we are in coping with the increasing number of air passengers.
Besides taxis, there is an airport shuttle connecting the airport and JB Sentral.
The service, courtesy of Air Asia, is free for Air Asia passengers while other people will have to pay a flat rate of RM8 for the 30-minute journey, or slightly longer depending on the traffic situation.
The service is only convenient for passengers whose destinations are the airport or JB Sentral.
With regards to stage buses, I was told that a bus company offers one bus for the Larkin-Senai-Larkin route. This means passengers will have to wait for more than an hour if they miss the bus at the airport or Larkin Terminal.
So, forget about the service if you are rushing for a flight.
There is another bus connecting Kulai and the Senai Airport. However, very few passengers are seen onboard as the TransIskandar Bus Service is running on a social route (i.e. a route with very few passengers).
As more than half of the flight services at the airport is provided by the low-cost carrier, Air Asia, I presume many of these travellers would not want to take a cab to or from the airport.
A trip from my office in Bandar Baru Uda to the airport easily costs RM42, inclusive of the RM12 surcharge. This is high for low-cost carrier passengers.
Too bad the airport is not linked by high-speed train such as at Kuala Lumpur International Airport or mass rapid transit at Changi Airport, Singapore.
To welcome tourists, more choices and greater frequency of public transport should be provided at the airport for the convenience of passengers.
When tourists find that it not cost-effective to use the airport to get to their destinations in Johor, they will probably opt for the Low Cost Carrier Terminal in Sepang or Changi Airport.
There are many bus lanes in the airport, which I believe are not meant for display. I hope the state Tourism Department, Tourism Malaysia, Senai Airport management and other agencies will look into this matter seriously. I want the airport to have impressive write-ups in websites such as Wikitravel or TripAdvisor.
There is a need for more cost-effective public transport at the airport.
~News courtesy of New Straits Times~
Senai International Airport received 101,927 passengers last year, almost a fivefold increase from 2011.
The volume is expected to increase further as Indonesian airline Citilink is expected to commence its operations soon, connecting Senai with four Indonesian cities -- Bandung, Surabaya, Denpasar and Medan.
The hike in passenger volume is good news for the state tourism industry. But, how prepared are we to handle such a large number of visitors?
Using the quantity and quality of public transport to and from the airport as the benchmark, we can get a rough picture of how prepared we are in coping with the increasing number of air passengers.
Besides taxis, there is an airport shuttle connecting the airport and JB Sentral.
The service, courtesy of Air Asia, is free for Air Asia passengers while other people will have to pay a flat rate of RM8 for the 30-minute journey, or slightly longer depending on the traffic situation.
The service is only convenient for passengers whose destinations are the airport or JB Sentral.
With regards to stage buses, I was told that a bus company offers one bus for the Larkin-Senai-Larkin route. This means passengers will have to wait for more than an hour if they miss the bus at the airport or Larkin Terminal.
So, forget about the service if you are rushing for a flight.
There is another bus connecting Kulai and the Senai Airport. However, very few passengers are seen onboard as the TransIskandar Bus Service is running on a social route (i.e. a route with very few passengers).
As more than half of the flight services at the airport is provided by the low-cost carrier, Air Asia, I presume many of these travellers would not want to take a cab to or from the airport.
A trip from my office in Bandar Baru Uda to the airport easily costs RM42, inclusive of the RM12 surcharge. This is high for low-cost carrier passengers.
Too bad the airport is not linked by high-speed train such as at Kuala Lumpur International Airport or mass rapid transit at Changi Airport, Singapore.
To welcome tourists, more choices and greater frequency of public transport should be provided at the airport for the convenience of passengers.
When tourists find that it not cost-effective to use the airport to get to their destinations in Johor, they will probably opt for the Low Cost Carrier Terminal in Sepang or Changi Airport.
There are many bus lanes in the airport, which I believe are not meant for display. I hope the state Tourism Department, Tourism Malaysia, Senai Airport management and other agencies will look into this matter seriously. I want the airport to have impressive write-ups in websites such as Wikitravel or TripAdvisor.
There is a need for more cost-effective public transport at the airport.
~News courtesy of New Straits Times~
No comments:
Post a Comment