KTMB Targets 1.2 Million ETS3 Passengers in 2026, MySawasdee Service Resumes

KTMB targets 1.2 million passengers for its new ETS3 this year, while the MySawasdee train service to Hatyai now resumes.

Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) targets a total of 1.2 million passengers using its new ETS3 this year, comprising a daily average of 2,600 passengers between Kuala Lumpur and Johor Bahru, 400 between Johor Bahru and Butterworth, and 400 between Johor Bahru and Padang Besar.

As reported by Bernama, the rail service provider currently operates eight ETS3 services daily, which comprises four northbound and four southbound trips since Dec 2025. This year, the service from Johor’s capital will be extended to Butterworth and Padang Besar, with two services each to bring the total daily services to 12.

“Once the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System Link (RTS Link) begins operations, we expect more passengers from Singapore to use domestic rail networks such as ETS3 and Komuter services as part of their onward journeys to other cities in Malaysia,” said KTMB COO Azfar Zakariya.

The COO further added that the RTS Link connecting Woodlands North station in Singapore to Bukit Chagar station in Johor Bahru is expected to boost the use of the ETS3 and KTMB’s current commuter services in the southern region, citing that both of them are strategic connectors that will further strengthen the regional rail transport ecosystem.

In a separate report, KTMB also announced that its MySawasdee train service that connects KL Sentral to Hatyai, Thailand, will resume its services later towards the end of this month, following a service halt due to the recent major floods there.

The first returning service will begin on Jan 30, 2026, from KL Sentral to Hatyai, and on Feb 2, 2026, for the return trip to Malaysia. The second service, on the other hand, will take place later, from March 27 to 30, 2026, with tickets starting from RM95 and can be purchased via KTMB’s official website, the KITS mobile app, or any KTMB physical ticket counters.

Mind you, while the service starts from KL Sentral, the MySawasdee train can also be boarded from Sungai Buloh, while stopping at Ipoh, Taiping, and Padang Besar en route to its final destination in the southern Thailand city.