Public transport in Malaysia is still one of the easiest ways to get around. However, the system isn’t perfect, as Datuk Kevin Boon Chin Tew (张文震), managing director of Anvil Development, recently discovered for himself.
Datuk Kevin Boon Chin Tew was going to take the train from the Sungai Jernih MRT station yesterday (11th March). But, it soon turned frustrating after he was stalled getting onto the ride, thanks to a string of misfortune involving his MyKad and malfunctioning machines.
As he told China Press, the Zhang Association Selangor & KL president had intended to take the train home yesterday from Sungai Jernih to Damansara Highlands. However, despite reaching the station around 5pm, it took him much longer to actually get on the train. The first barrier he encountered was his MyKad not working at the turnstile.
“There was still a RM400 deposit left in the card. I took it to the counter to inquire about it and was told the chip had expired. It needed to be updated and could not be used at the moment,” he shared. As the counters do not sell tickets, he had to use a ticket machine to obtain one. Unfortunately, that was when he encountered his second hurdle.
“The ticket machine (which accepts) credit cards (was) malfunctioning. One of the machines (accepting cash) was also broken. The other only accepts RM1 and RM5 notes,” he recounted. He went back to the counter to get some change, but the machine ended up eating his money. Thankfully, a staff member helped him regain some of his cash and got him the ticket. He was still short of RM1, but as he was in a hurry and tired, he decided to let the matter go.
Datuk Kevin Boon Chin Tew lamented: “It used to just take a few seconds to scan the MyKad and get through (the turnstiles). Now, it takes me 20 minutes to buy a ticket.” He hoped relevant authorities could look into the issue, as most Malaysians relied on public transport, and it could leave a bad impression on tourists.
The post has allegedly since been removed. However, Datuk Kevin Boon Chin Tew’s experience isn’t an uncommon one. We too hope steps will be taken to maintain the station’s facilities better to avoid such issues from cropping up again.
Source: China Press
