Just to clarify things for viewers here. So far, Malaysia does not have any bullet train or high speed train yet. We only have modern electrical trains that run faster in our old and traditional meter (a.k.a. narrow) gauge tracks/rails. Generally, we Malaysians perceive the speed of 200km/h and below ⬇️ is not a high speed for trains. Just like cars on highways driving faster in fourth to fifth gear only. That’s not called bullet or high speed. Just averagely faster than normal speed and above. And by far, we don’t see that in the near future does Malaysia need any bullet train or high speed train at the moment, especially when we have to spend billions on it. Because in Malaysia, train usually is the last resort or option for Malaysians to utilize when it comes to transportation services. Mostly Malaysians prefer cars, bikes, planes, buses and ferries/ships first, before trains. Trains mainly used for logistics, businesses, commercials, commodities and transportation services purposes.
We took this train from the Thai Malay border (Padang Besar) to Kuala Lumpur in Aug 24. We were pretty impressed by the train, going at 140-145km/h. Although Malaysia has a good modern system, I personally find it a lot more relaxing than driving, as well as scenic. The train was well patronized by local travelers, and was close to full as it approached KL. I liked the idea also that if you lived outside KL it would be a very quick way to get into the centre of KL, and faster than car (also avoiding KL traffic), and perhaps not much different to the plane, when time to arrive at the airport and transit time from KL airport to KL central (approx 1hr) is included. It is also good for tourists, and nicer/more spacious than the bus.
@@MrPetergt Well said. Indeed. As a Penangite myself who works and lives in KL now, last time I did travelled with train between Penang and Kuala Lumpur. Totally agree with you here😊
You mentioned that Malaysia does not need any bullet train in the "near future" but aren't they already getting the project started on the Singapore-Malaysia high speed rail that will essentially serve a few number of cities between Johor and KL for the first phase?
@@nhy123123Technically and economically, the High-speed railed ( HSR) train is not viable project. This is because Malaysian highway is excellent, and Singapore-KL flights are frequent and cheap. ETS trains (120 to 150 km/ hr) is sufficient🫡🫡
@@nhy123123that Malaysia-Singapore high speed train and currently in progress ECRL project are mainly for logistic transportation (to transport cargo), not for passengers
hi malaysian train enthu here at 5:36 (the waiting area stuff) you were taken back through the main station concourse and and down to those platforms its is becuase the dedicated ETS platforms were being upgraded with the new double track AKA new slippers and rails, so passengers HAD to go down to those platform you showed, if im correct it was during deepvali some time last year, since i saw deepavali decorations in the food court sign at 1:37 correct me if im wrong but it stayed like that until feburary or march this year (2024) now the dedicated ETS platforms are opended back up again yes tickets can be an issue sometime but malaysian's railway network is very good and up to date, thanks for showcasing malaysia's railway in this video
@@GreatSageSunWukong Some suggest it was used for putting your wire earphone in it. KTM will also give the bussiness class passanger a new earphone in their goodies box.
Platform 1 & 2 for ETS right now is under upgra grading. Before this Business Class passengers can directly through to platform 1 and 2 by using lift from Business Class Lounge.
Whilst 145 km/h on metre gauge is a impressive and it looks a decent service, the airport express runs at 160 km/h so that is the fastest train in Malaysia
the Airport Express is using the standard gauge, so 160 km/h isn't impressive at all. it could be easily at least a 200 km/h line. however, it wouldn't really decrease the travel time. so, in terms of cost effectiveness, I think 160 is optimal
@@SeverityOne and they aren't as slow as 80 km/h or less there... usually... :) I think for a country of that size it isn't a big issue. you still can travel across the country in a couple of hour time. for the distance this bullet train travels, you would find yourself in Paris suburbs :)
15:22 is no flooding - that is the Tasik Merah reservoir. The railway traverses over it on marine viaduct now -it used to be on a narrow causeway which was on your right side of travel
😅.. i also almost laugh when he said it was a flesh flood, but just forgive him cause maybe he sudenly woke up during the train passed by the lake view... But the most importance is i'm happy to see he was enjoy along the journey❤👍🏽👏🤝
For your information, Malaysia does not need High Speed Trains like other countries, instead the ETS, RTS & ECRL in semi-high speed movement just quite enaugh because the transportation system such as North - South & East - West Express Highways are the best as the main option in a small country. Furthermore, the moderate speed will give Tourists and Passengers the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful scenery on the left & right throughout the journey without stress. In fact, the existing speed is quite on time as planned...enjoy👍🏽
agree. And we certainly do not need to spent billions (Through debts) on a new High Speed Rail to Singapore, there are more than 20 flights a day Subang / KUL-SIN across at least 6 airlines, there are electric trains, buses etc. Spending billions on HSR felt more like a white elephant project, less a necessity
I need to disagree, if there's one thing Malaysia need, it would be High Speed Trains. Our North-South Express way has been at its limit with frequent jam. Btw for the people who got fooled by the Mercator projection on our world maps, they might be surprise to find Malaysia is not that small, Peninsula Malaysia is the same size as England!
I have been on this train! (When I visited Malaysia, KL-Butterworth,Penang - the same train you took) I think it’s one of the world’s fastest narrow gauge railway services - faster than Japan. And it’s quite affordable, business class was very comfortable and the meal (different to yours, it was some seasoned rice & meat, I forget the details, sorry, it was similar to your second meal, but the rice was green) was surprisingly good. Although, I did experience patchy internet speeds ranging from very slow to quite fast (0.1mgb/s to 60mgb/s) 1:34 When I visited Malaysia (back in June 2024, 2 months ago), and KL Sentral, that food court you showed in the main station was shut down/closed a month or so before got there. 5:38 also that area you were waiting, when I went, there was escalators from there down to a different platform, maybe they were closed for maintenance at the time, idk. They seemed like dedicated platforms for ETS, but I don’t know.
Maximum speed on japanese narrow gauge tracks in 130km/h.but there was this hakutaka express on hokuhoku line that ran on a maximum speed of 160km/h.but it was replaced by the shinkansen.
30 Euros on Malaysian train: meals, wifi, a display, good and well padded seats, friendly staff, ... 30 Euros on German train: 2nd class, ok seats (seat reservation costs extra) and full of people, with no Internet
Thanks for sharing, informative. We local dont refer to ETS as bullet train… My understanding for bullet train is for High Speed Rail. So, in Malaysia we just refer it as “ETS”…😊 thanks.
Great video. Being narrow gauge, this is something I would love to see my wife’s home country of Vietnam get. Really enjoy the feel of a 140km/h - 180 km/h ride along a tropical route.
Indonesian here! I've noticed that Malaysia uses meter-gauge for its railways and still manages to run trains at 145km/h. Really happy with that. but, I don't see any reason why Indonesia couldn't upgrade its existing 1067mm gauge to at least 140km/h like in Malaysia. In fact, aiming for 160km/h, sounds even better. Well, our Whoosh high-speed train can reach impressive speeds of 350km/h. However, I'd like to see our standard non-high-speed train services improve and catch up with this high-speed train. Other countries with high-speed rail (HSR) already have trains running at speeds of over 160km/h before the true HSR being built, while our regular trains only reach speeds of 120km/h, despite the fact that our existing tracks are capable of handling higher speeds. This is also the case in Malaysia, they built higher-speed railway first then planning for true HSR, unlike Indonesia, we just jumped into HSR stuff and leaving our slow train behind...
in Malaysia we have ETS (Electric Train Service) with a maximum speed of 160km per hour since 2010 with a distance of 947 km from Padang Besar Perlis to Johor Bahru Sentral. before the high-speed train is launched, government needs to survey about the number of passengers who use this service so as not to suffer losses.
@@myza21 No hate, what are you saying is not so factual but I wouldn't say anything bad abt it. 1st ETS runs 140km/h, but ecrl (U/C) and klia express runs 160km/h, 2nd currently the length of the service is 755km. About the demand thingy, for sure Indonesia won't need a survey for railway passengers demand because it is and will always be so high. For even The Whoosh is always on very high demand despite the high price of it. Well, now it's a kinda tourist attraction (Malaysian, and many foreigners love riding Whoosh to Bandung) even for us locals but expanding the line to Yogyakarta or Surabaya would make the Whoosh economically profitable.
Much work to do kalau aku liat mah kalau mau upgrade jalur existing. Selurus lurusnya jalur kereta Indonesia tuh gak lurus. Jadi ya kudu relokasi. Kan gak mungkin berhentiin kereta yang udah ada 😢
Hope you enjoyed our "Azuma look-alike", they are definitely not the same but close enough! 😂 Believe it or not, I've only rode the normal ETS (Class 93/1) back when I was in Malaysia, but I've always been impressed with the growth of the ETS service and look forward to ride them!
5:53 Mistook this for the Hitatchi product , came here to see if they did it any better. 7:13 Would like to see more of this station . 8:18 A bit like the former first class seats on some of GWRs' Turbos. 10:57 Reminds me of Chichester. 15:22 Looks abit like the Somerset Levels .
Omg. I travelled on the same train from Butterworth to KL Sentral on 19th Oct. And i made same kind of video inspired from you(to show my parents). When i was recording i was thinking about youtube channel. Today i came to know that you also made on the same train and same route. Thank you so so much for inspiring me. And please upload more and more videos. Lots of loves and best wishes from India ❤ Edit : KL sentral was crazy confusing.
15:20 - you mentioned about the flooding but actually what you are passing is the (as far as I know is) the longest rail viaduct in SEA, passing a huge river/lake To those who know more in detail can comment down below my comment Also as a fellow Malaysian, I hope you enjoyed your trip on the Class 93/2 ETS sets, wait until for the ETS 3 to come into service
"Built-in 1906, Bukit Merah Lake is one of the country's oldest and was originally built to allow padi farmers to practice twice-a-year harvesting. This lake occupies an area of about 40 sq km and straddles two districts - Kerian and Larut Matang."
A lot more impressive than regional and interstate trains in Australia. Eight times the price, no electric outlets, usb sockets or free wifi with average speeds under 100 kms and most stock well over 40 years old
@@dandindan whoosh uses the standard gauge vs meter gauge in MY which limits the maximum speed drastically. moreover whoosh has relatively short line whereas ETS covers all the way from Johor Baru to the northern limits. you can brag when whoosh will be connecting JKT with SBY
@@dandindan there's nothing to cry about (at least for me). I live too far from both countries to really care about all this. it's just funny to see a person from an underdeveloped country (compared to MY) who is overproud of the fact that the government spends huge amounts of money on toys on rails while more than half the population remains in poverty PS jangan marah mas/mbak(?)
You must be taking the train during the period where the main ETS platforms are under maintenance. As the platforms you had shown in KL Sentral section of the video as well as lead by a staff member into the Komuter platforms. The regular platforms are directly under ETS waiting area where you are grouped with others.
I was born & grew up in KL but haven't been back for 57 years as my house has now been wiped off the earth for a large block of units & underground car park. The last train journey was by train & we left from the then still functioning & clean colonial main station.
Hi Howard! Where in KL did your old house use to be? Sounds like it could be anywhere in the city. I was back for a visit recently after four years, and much had changed - let alone 57 years (!) Hope life's been kind to you.
@@aidanross9489 G'day. 21a Jalan Pengawa off Lower Ampang Rd. It's gone, sadly, to make way for multistorey units & under ground carpark. So my connection with KL is severed now. They even pulled down a beautiful colonial building that housed the Coq d'Or restaurant where I spent many a Sunday having curry tiffin.
@@howardsykes2754 Yes, that's a very nice part of Ampang, which has also made it a choice area for the developers unfortunately. I also remember the building which housed Le Coq D'or restaurant, and the neglect towards its latter years - its stakeholders may have found it to their (commercial) interests to build something completely new over it. As for us who had spent a part of our lives in KL, we can only reminisce of how it used to be, sadly.
Definitely good observation .. THANK YOU for bringing up as much discomforts n any shortcomings... hopefully the responsible authority ll take note With urgency to improve 👌😅
it's just that a normal modern train ETS means electric train service, is not a bullet or high speed train because our country still does not have that yet
there is no bullet train in malaysia, it is only doble track electric train that max speed around 150 km/h at certain route. It is affodable train, not too expensive. Malaysia Peninsular train track is about 800 km in length.
Fun fact about Simpang, meaning junction: there is a station on the railway of Mallorca called Enlaç, which is catalan for, guess what, "connection/junction". So they seem to be sister stations😁
Malaysians love their KTM operated ETS trains, due to its high popularity, you need to book your ETS trips month ahead. If not because of the ETS, KTM would have close shop long ago. It have taken KTM 30 long years to re-build the whole colonial line with a brand new dual electrification 952km line. But mid of 2025 the last portion of the 197km Gemas-Johor Baru line will be ready. It be be excite times, as the Malaysians working will able hope on the Tebrau Shuttle from Singapore to cross the causeway to JB Sentral then cross over to take the ETS to KL in just 3.5 hours and reached Butterworth/Penang in just 7.5 hours.
Try to pronounce empat in mat saleh style or accent 😊 then you would understand why it was spelt with an A instead of E. The same thing happened to Tanjung Bungah in Penang and Bedong in Kedah which should be pronounced Bidung. 😊
The ETs only ends at JB, it won't cross the causeway. You hv to get on board Tebrau Shuttle to Singapore. That will ends once the RTS is up and running.
@@Zakry-z3m If I'm not mistaken, there's already some planning/discussion on that connecting both countries in Borneo. Most likely it's going to happen but don't know when.
Nice work and rather a different train to the one we caught in 2012 from Butterworth to KL. I hope the aircon wasn't shut off once you were away from the major termini, as was done on our train.
That loud TVs, there are anywhere in Malaysia, in government office, hospital waiting area, stations waiting area, dealership office etc. People here also seems to like blasting their videos on their phones in public.
That small pocket on the head rest in front of you is for you to put your ticket ready for inspection. At KL Sentral you were diverted to the KTM Komuter platforms (KTM Komuter is Malaysia's equivalent of the old BR Network SouthEast). The Intercity platform could have been congested at the time (there being only two)
You can really see the British influence on the railway infrastructure. Simple 3 or 4 aspect signals, BR-style shunt indicators, and the overhead wire systems with the quintessentially British Mark 3 Headspan.
You've missed Parit Buntar, Nibong Tebal avd various other small but busy stations lol, anyways what a great way to visit Malaysia and talking about out KTM ETS!
Pardon my train of thoughts, the British built a narrower train track due to cost in Malaysia and also built sub-standard living environment for the HK people when they had taken in so much money in both places. So what are the good things did the British do to these 2 places in the past which till now we are able to see the benefits? Just curious.
at 15:24, i dont think that is flood, but that is a lake or water reservoir.. I have taken KTM ETS ride of the same route few times before and that area still looking the same (full of water)
I don't know why you think double decker trains are some sort of advancement? They allow a higher number of passengers per set but have some major drawbacks with accessibility and longer dwelling times. Longer, level trains, with more doors and shorter dwelling times are much more preferable. The UK is really lagging behind with infrastructure, but double decker trains isn't exactly a goal. Electrification on the other hand should be a goal!
@@f.g.9466 Go and have a look in the Netherlands, the country with the busiest rail network in Europe (the UK has the second busiest). Most long-distance trains are double-deckers. The reason is simply a matter of capacity. Not all stations can easily be extended, and running longer trains (12 cars is pretty much the maximum) isn't an option either. And forget about running more trains. Most regional/commuter trains are single-deck, though. There used to be double-deck trains regional trains, but things have changed around a bit. Before the pandemic, long-distance trains on the main north-west to south-east corridor, which goes through Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Eindhoven, would typically be two sets of six cars double-deck trains. These seat around 600 people each, so a maximum capacity of 1200 seats per train. And they'd run every 15 minutes or so on the busiest routes.
Wait. The UK hasn't finished electrifying its trains yet? I know there are like 7x more tracks there, but still, this was your colony 70 years ago. It's not like Malaysia has been very fast. The double-tracking/electrification/grade-separation project has been going for 30 years, and we're still 5 - 10 years from completion. But the UK seems to be going even slower!
@@danielch6662 only ~33% of the network is electrified in the UK and there is no actual plan to electrify the rest of the network. Including one of the main lines out of central London with frequent suburban and regional services that still run on diesel (Chilterns Main Line). They're now toying around with battery trains because electrification isn't happening. I always use India, an ex British colony, as an example of extreme contrast. India made a plan and in less than a decade it managed to electrify almost the entire network (they were over 90% last time I checked and on track to hit 100% in the next year excluding only some private freight branches). India's railway network is 3 times bigger than the British one, so size of the network isn't an excuse. I'm not saying that it makes sense to electrify 100% of the British network, some lines are hard to justify, but certainly way more than half of the network should have more frequent services and electrification. The anglophone countries are all actually quite bad when it comes to investing in railways or public transport in general. Leeds is the largest city in Western Europe without a mass rapid transit system.
13:40 one time when my family got back from Perlis to KL, uhh me and my brother saw someone watching some content... that would be illegal. well that was when we finally reached KL, soo yeah
Please make a video of the Urlaubs Express in the summer from Villach when it's hot and by car, just had a ride on it and if it's hot you're in for a surprise. Basically it needs exposure for that price. One positive as a spoiler: the staff is amazing!
Psst In Malaysia you only need to get pass the first gate. Which requires you to have a valid ticket. Onboarding ETS or EAL on the stations with assumption you know where is your destination. If you miss it, you need to pay at the gate. Or if random ticket checking and everyone seats accordingly
The second meal “Something else” is Curry Chicken. Locals favorite meal for all races. As per the flooding, that’s a beautiful lake and the train was traveling over a long bridge. 😅
Does the train run up to 180 at all - you mention its service speed is 140-145? The service speed of the Tilt train in Australia is 160 on narrow gauge.
So should i choose Platinum A or B or C or D or E or F ??? Which coach is good for 1 adult and 1 kid ??? Please advise ?? I am going from KL to Padang Basar
That place that was surrounded by water is called bukit merah laketown resort. And that water is not flood water, actually the train is crossing the middle of the lake.
even a 4-hour flights in business class won't provide 2 meals lol. this is insane to stuff so much food into your stomach with 2 hours between the meals (for an average human)
@@raics101 I have tried curing my throat by drinking a microwaved beer :) Well, that’s an experience indeed. Whole new sensation. It was disgusting at first but then I’ve discovered new layers of taste. Nowadays I usually have nothing against lukewarm beers in general lol. PS my throat really got better after that potion. And I’m even not nearly any British
I maybe have smth interresting for you. In Cologne, Germany you can catch an TRIRE1 to Essen HBF or Dortmund HBF . You can catch old trains on that route. Or maybe an new one...
The trains are Chinese , supplied by China Railway Construction Corp. They have projects in multiple countries and part of the Belt and Road initiative. The second largest construction company in the world. Number 1 is China State Construction & Engineering Corp. China used more concrete in 3 years than the entire history of US. That’s how big they are.
These Malaysian trains are really distant cousins of the German ICE trains. CRRC got very good at copying and modifying them for their own domestic high speed and then began selling them onwards to regional buyers
You know, you should try Romania's "Huțulca" communist train! It runs on narrow gauge and is a very scenic ride. I've been there 2 days ago, and I loved it! ❤
Just to clarify things for viewers here. So far, Malaysia does not have any bullet train or high speed train yet. We only have modern electrical trains that run faster in our old and traditional meter (a.k.a. narrow) gauge tracks/rails.
Generally, we Malaysians perceive the speed of 200km/h and below ⬇️ is not a high speed for trains. Just like cars on highways driving faster in fourth to fifth gear only. That’s not called bullet or high speed. Just averagely faster than normal speed and above.
And by far, we don’t see that in the near future does Malaysia need any bullet train or high speed train at the moment, especially when we have to spend billions on it. Because in Malaysia, train usually is the last resort or option for Malaysians to utilize when it comes to transportation services. Mostly Malaysians prefer cars, bikes, planes, buses and ferries/ships first, before trains. Trains mainly used for logistics, businesses, commercials, commodities and transportation services purposes.
We took this train from the Thai Malay border (Padang Besar) to Kuala Lumpur in Aug 24. We were pretty impressed by the train, going at 140-145km/h. Although Malaysia has a good modern system, I personally find it a lot more relaxing than driving, as well as scenic. The train was well patronized by local travelers, and was close to full as it approached KL. I liked the idea also that if you lived outside KL it would be a very quick way to get into the centre of KL, and faster than car (also avoiding KL traffic), and perhaps not much different to the plane, when time to arrive at the airport and transit time from KL airport to KL central (approx 1hr) is included. It is also good for tourists, and nicer/more spacious than the bus.
@@MrPetergt Well said. Indeed. As a Penangite myself who works and lives in KL now, last time I did travelled with train between Penang and Kuala Lumpur. Totally agree with you here😊
You mentioned that Malaysia does not need any bullet train in the "near future" but aren't they already getting the project started on the Singapore-Malaysia high speed rail that will essentially serve a few number of cities between Johor and KL for the first phase?
@@nhy123123Technically and economically, the High-speed railed ( HSR) train is not viable project. This is because Malaysian highway is excellent, and Singapore-KL flights are frequent and cheap. ETS trains (120 to 150 km/ hr) is sufficient🫡🫡
@@nhy123123that Malaysia-Singapore high speed train and currently in progress ECRL project are mainly for logistic transportation (to transport cargo), not for passengers
hi malaysian train enthu here at 5:36 (the waiting area stuff) you were taken back through the main station concourse and and down to those platforms its is becuase the dedicated ETS platforms were being upgraded with the new double track AKA new slippers and rails, so passengers HAD to go down to those platform you showed, if im correct it was during deepvali some time last year, since i saw deepavali decorations in the food court sign at 1:37 correct me if im wrong but it stayed like that until feburary or march this year (2024) now the dedicated ETS platforms are opended back up again yes tickets can be an issue sometime but malaysian's railway network is very good and up to date, thanks for showcasing malaysia's railway in this video
do you know what the the little pocket is for @8:54 is it for tickets?
@@GreatSageSunWukong Some suggest it was used for putting your wire earphone in it. KTM will also give the bussiness class passanger a new earphone in their goodies box.
Platform 1 & 2 for ETS right now is under upgra grading.
Before this Business Class passengers can directly through to platform 1 and 2 by using lift from Business Class Lounge.
@@bungaraya19082013 yes true but now the upgrade is done and ETS Platinum,Gold,and sliver services are operating from the dedicated platform 1 and 2
No it's just a small storage pocket for smth idk @@GreatSageSunWukong
Whilst 145 km/h on metre gauge is a impressive and it looks a decent service, the airport express runs at 160 km/h so that is the fastest train in Malaysia
the Airport Express is using the standard gauge, so 160 km/h isn't impressive at all. it could be easily at least a 200 km/h line. however, it wouldn't really decrease the travel time. so, in terms of cost effectiveness, I think 160 is optimal
@@Apawcalypse_Meow I wish it could be 😔
@@Apawcalypse_Meow 160 km/h is faster than almost all trains in the Netherlands... 🙂
@@SeverityOne and they aren't as slow as 80 km/h or less there... usually... :) I think for a country of that size it isn't a big issue. you still can travel across the country in a couple of hour time. for the distance this bullet train travels, you would find yourself in Paris suburbs :)
The speed of modern electric trains in Malaysia, which is between 145 and 200 km/h, is adequate considering that Malaysia is hilly and mountainous.
15:22 is no flooding - that is the Tasik Merah reservoir. The railway traverses over it on marine viaduct now -it used to be on a narrow causeway which was on your right side of travel
Fair enough, thank you! :)
😅.. i also almost laugh when he said it was a flesh flood, but just forgive him cause maybe he sudenly woke up during the train passed by the lake view... But the most importance is i'm happy to see he was enjoy along the journey❤👍🏽👏🤝
😂😂😂 it's a lake.. I wish they had build the ETS Line on the old railway Line.
Btw
Tasik=lake
Merah=red
And yes it's just a name
For your information, Malaysia does not need High Speed Trains like other countries, instead the ETS, RTS & ECRL in semi-high speed movement just quite enaugh because the transportation system such as North - South & East - West Express Highways are the best as the main option in a small country. Furthermore, the moderate speed will give Tourists and Passengers the opportunity to enjoy the beautiful scenery on the left & right throughout the journey without stress. In fact, the existing speed is quite on time as planned...enjoy👍🏽
The speed of modern electric trains in Malaysia, which is between 145 and 200 km/h, is adequate considering that Malaysia is hilly and mountainous.
@@sempoi7399 right👍🏽
agree. And we certainly do not need to spent billions (Through debts) on a new High Speed Rail to Singapore, there are more than 20 flights a day Subang / KUL-SIN across at least 6 airlines, there are electric trains, buses etc. Spending billions on HSR felt more like a white elephant project, less a necessity
@@chieftanke right
I need to disagree, if there's one thing Malaysia need, it would be High Speed Trains. Our North-South Express way has been at its limit with frequent jam. Btw for the people who got fooled by the Mercator projection on our world maps, they might be surprise to find Malaysia is not that small, Peninsula Malaysia is the same size as England!
I have been on this train! (When I visited Malaysia, KL-Butterworth,Penang - the same train you took) I think it’s one of the world’s fastest narrow gauge railway services - faster than Japan. And it’s quite affordable, business class was very comfortable and the meal (different to yours, it was some seasoned rice & meat, I forget the details, sorry, it was similar to your second meal, but the rice was green) was surprisingly good. Although, I did experience patchy internet speeds ranging from very slow to quite fast (0.1mgb/s to 60mgb/s)
1:34 When I visited Malaysia (back in June 2024, 2 months ago), and KL Sentral, that food court you showed in the main station was shut down/closed a month or so before got there.
5:38 also that area you were waiting, when I went, there was escalators from there down to a different platform, maybe they were closed for maintenance at the time, idk. They seemed like dedicated platforms for ETS, but I don’t know.
Maximum speed on japanese narrow gauge tracks in 130km/h.but there was this hakutaka express on hokuhoku line that ran on a maximum speed of 160km/h.but it was replaced by the shinkansen.
30 Euros on Malaysian train:
meals, wifi, a display, good and well padded seats, friendly staff, ...
30 Euros on German train: 2nd class, ok seats (seat reservation costs extra) and full of people, with no Internet
I love this! It's refreshing to see meter/narrow guage trains but integrated with modern higher speed technology. Kinda cute too
7:40 - I can see what you did there with the subtitles
XD noticed it
I came to find that comment 🤣
We won't talk about that famous actress and why's related to BIG buildings 🤣
Appreciate that find , unexpected but made me laugh.
She also has two big buildings 😏😁
LMAOOO, dude, I saw that too. 🤣
Cool Malaysian train. Greetings from your neighbor 😄👋
Thanks for sharing, informative. We local dont refer to ETS as bullet train…
My understanding for bullet train is for High Speed Rail.
So, in Malaysia we just refer it as “ETS”…😊
thanks.
The speed of modern electric trains in Malaysia, which is between 145 and 200 km/h, is adequate considering that Malaysia is hilly and mountainous.
Great video. Being narrow gauge, this is something I would love to see my wife’s home country of Vietnam get. Really enjoy the feel of a 140km/h - 180 km/h ride along a tropical route.
Absolutely, that would be awesome!
The speed of modern electric trains in Malaysia, which is between 145 and 200 km/h, is adequate considering that Malaysia is hilly and mountainous.
@@sempoi7399 Absolutely not, that speed is woeful. Japan is just as hilly and mountainous, Malaysia is long overdue for high speed trains.
Something I was waiting for the last 2 weeks. Thanks Superalbs, you probably have the best train review videos!
Amazing video i love ur channel i have been watching for a long Time
Indonesian here! I've noticed that Malaysia uses meter-gauge for its railways and still manages to run trains at 145km/h. Really happy with that. but, I don't see any reason why Indonesia couldn't upgrade its existing 1067mm gauge to at least 140km/h like in Malaysia. In fact, aiming for 160km/h, sounds even better. Well, our Whoosh high-speed train can reach impressive speeds of 350km/h. However, I'd like to see our standard non-high-speed train services improve and catch up with this high-speed train. Other countries with high-speed rail (HSR) already have trains running at speeds of over 160km/h before the true HSR being built, while our regular trains only reach speeds of 120km/h, despite the fact that our existing tracks are capable of handling higher speeds. This is also the case in Malaysia, they built higher-speed railway first then planning for true HSR, unlike Indonesia, we just jumped into HSR stuff and leaving our slow train behind...
Truly insightful. Are you a locomotive engineer?
@@brentyap1920 nope, just some random train enthu
in Malaysia we have ETS (Electric Train Service) with a maximum speed of 160km per hour since 2010 with a distance of 947 km from Padang Besar Perlis to Johor Bahru Sentral. before the high-speed train is launched, government needs to survey about the number of passengers who use this service so as not to suffer losses.
@@myza21 No hate, what are you saying is not so factual but I wouldn't say anything bad abt it. 1st ETS runs 140km/h, but ecrl (U/C) and klia express runs 160km/h, 2nd currently the length of the service is 755km. About the demand thingy, for sure Indonesia won't need a survey for railway passengers demand because it is and will always be so high. For even The Whoosh is always on very high demand despite the high price of it. Well, now it's a kinda tourist attraction (Malaysian, and many foreigners love riding Whoosh to Bandung) even for us locals but expanding the line to Yogyakarta or Surabaya would make the Whoosh economically profitable.
Much work to do kalau aku liat mah kalau mau upgrade jalur existing. Selurus lurusnya jalur kereta Indonesia tuh gak lurus. Jadi ya kudu relokasi. Kan gak mungkin berhentiin kereta yang udah ada 😢
Hope you enjoyed our "Azuma look-alike", they are definitely not the same but close enough! 😂
Believe it or not, I've only rode the normal ETS (Class 93/1) back when I was in Malaysia, but I've always been impressed with the growth of the ETS service and look forward to ride them!
5:53 Mistook this for the Hitatchi product , came here to see if they did it any better.
7:13 Would like to see more of this station .
8:18 A bit like the former first class seats on some of GWRs' Turbos.
10:57 Reminds me of Chichester.
15:22 Looks abit like the Somerset Levels .
Omg. I travelled on the same train from Butterworth to KL Sentral on 19th Oct. And i made same kind of video inspired from you(to show my parents). When i was recording i was thinking about youtube channel. Today i came to know that you also made on the same train and same route.
Thank you so so much for inspiring me. And please upload more and more videos. Lots of loves and best wishes from India ❤
Edit : KL sentral was crazy confusing.
15:20 - you mentioned about the flooding but actually what you are passing is the (as far as I know is) the longest rail viaduct in SEA, passing a huge river/lake
To those who know more in detail can comment down below my comment
Also as a fellow Malaysian, I hope you enjoyed your trip on the Class 93/2 ETS sets, wait until for the ETS 3 to come into service
"Built-in 1906, Bukit Merah Lake is one of the country's oldest and was originally built to allow padi farmers to practice twice-a-year harvesting.
This lake occupies an area of about 40 sq km and straddles two districts - Kerian and Larut Matang."
Yeah, the next generation ETS looks exciting! :)
1:54 Ukranian railways has similar merchandise shops in Lviv and in Kiyiv.
Sadly no on-line purchases...
@@jgodfrey546 I prefer shopping at an actual shop myself . Most of the time ....
A lot more impressive than regional and interstate trains in Australia. Eight times the price, no electric outlets, usb sockets or free wifi with average speeds under 100 kms and most stock well over 40 years old
at 15.20, actually it's the Bukit Merah Lake, a man-made lake with a railway crossing
Breeding water for one of the finest species of Arowana fish in Asia.
Pretty impressive for a 145-180km/h train.
Edit: omg what have I started?
whoosh is better than this mess who can actually reach 350km/h in operated mode LMAOO
@@dandindan whoosh uses the standard gauge vs meter gauge in MY which limits the maximum speed drastically. moreover whoosh has relatively short line whereas ETS covers all the way from Johor Baru to the northern limits. you can brag when whoosh will be connecting JKT with SBY
@@Apawcalypse_Meow still better than whatever that is LMAOOO, also the expanded construction to SBY has already started so cry more i guess ❤️
@@dandindan there's nothing to cry about (at least for me). I live too far from both countries to really care about all this. it's just funny to see a person from an underdeveloped country (compared to MY) who is overproud of the fact that the government spends huge amounts of money on toys on rails while more than half the population remains in poverty
PS jangan marah mas/mbak(?)
@@dandindan SDM rendah ngelunjak
You must be taking the train during the period where the main ETS platforms are under maintenance. As the platforms you had shown in KL Sentral section of the video as well as lead by a staff member into the Komuter platforms. The regular platforms are directly under ETS waiting area where you are grouped with others.
Oh thanks! It was awful...
ETS train...from South to North of Peninsular Msia....you can try ECRL ..East Coast Railink to West Coast..676km when its completed in 2026....
I was born & grew up in KL but haven't been back for 57 years as my house has now been wiped off the earth for a large block of units & underground car park. The last train journey was by train & we left from the then still functioning & clean colonial main station.
Hi Howard! Where in KL did your old house use to be? Sounds like it could be anywhere in the city. I was back for a visit recently after four years, and much had changed - let alone 57 years (!) Hope life's been kind to you.
@@aidanross9489 G'day. 21a Jalan Pengawa off Lower Ampang Rd. It's gone, sadly, to make way for multistorey units & under ground carpark. So my connection with KL is severed now. They even pulled down a beautiful colonial building that housed the Coq d'Or restaurant where I spent many a Sunday having curry tiffin.
@@howardsykes2754 Yes, that's a very nice part of Ampang, which has also made it a choice area for the developers unfortunately. I also remember the building which housed Le Coq D'or restaurant, and the neglect towards its latter years - its stakeholders may have found it to their (commercial) interests to build something completely new over it. As for us who had spent a part of our lives in KL, we can only reminisce of how it used to be, sadly.
The fact is ETS is the second fastest train in Malaysia after KLIA Express. Thank you for highlighting this train to the 🌎❤
Great trip, and yeah welcome back for uploading again. It's great you try this train.
that prayer room at 12:00 looked like it had a sick rave going on inside
A really beautiful country,cheers fella 👍
There is a stop at Kampar because it is a major education hub, many students are traveling to/traveling home from there. I used to work there.
Definitely good observation .. THANK YOU for bringing up as much discomforts n any shortcomings... hopefully the responsible authority ll take note With urgency to improve 👌😅
it's just that a normal modern train ETS means electric train service, is not a bullet or high speed train because our country still does not have that yet
Stunning train design 👌
fun to see a route I've done myself many times on this channel!
there is no bullet train in malaysia, it is only doble track electric train that max speed around 150 km/h at certain route. It is affodable train, not too expensive. Malaysia Peninsular train track is about 800 km in length.
The speed of modern electric trains in Malaysia, which is between 145 and 200 km/h, is adequate considering that Malaysia is hilly and mountainous.
Finally! waiting ur video for our train in Malaysia haha
😃😃😃
Fun fact about Simpang, meaning junction: there is a station on the railway of Mallorca called Enlaç, which is catalan for, guess what, "connection/junction". So they seem to be sister stations😁
Hahahaha 😂😂😂
Malaysians love their KTM operated ETS trains, due to its high popularity, you need to book your ETS trips month ahead. If not because of the ETS, KTM would have close shop long ago. It have taken KTM 30 long years to re-build the whole colonial line with a brand new dual electrification 952km line. But mid of 2025 the last portion of the 197km Gemas-Johor Baru line will be ready. It be be excite times, as the Malaysians working will able hope on the Tebrau Shuttle from Singapore to cross the causeway to JB Sentral then cross over to take the ETS to KL in just 3.5 hours and reached Butterworth/Penang in just 7.5 hours.
Hi. Before Simpang Ampat the water mass is actually a lake near Bukit Merah.
Simpang Ampat means a four-junction or cross roads where 4 roads meet. Ampat is serived from Empat, 4
Try to pronounce empat in mat saleh style or accent 😊 then you would understand why it was spelt with an A instead of E. The same thing happened to Tanjung Bungah in Penang and Bedong in Kedah which should be pronounced Bidung. 😊
FINALLY YOU IN MALAYSIA :D :D :D :D :D
ETS train next year!
Thailand border ↔️ Kuala Lumpur, MY ↔️ Singapore border
Do you think it will be extended to Indonesia?
The ETs only ends at JB, it won't cross the causeway. You hv to get on board Tebrau Shuttle to Singapore. That will ends once the RTS is up and running.
@@Zakry-z3mno, unless if both govts agreed to build a bridge to Sumatra. But I don't see that from happening..
@@Zakry-z3m If I'm not mistaken, there's already some planning/discussion on that connecting both countries in Borneo. Most likely it's going to happen but don't know when.
By end of 2025 you can travel via ETS up to Johor Bahru in the southern state near Singapore using newer version of trains.
Nice work and rather a different train to the one we caught in 2012 from Butterworth to KL. I hope the aircon wasn't shut off once you were away from the major termini, as was done on our train.
145-180 km/h on a narrow gauge? Have they learned the technologies from Japan? (from both the Hokohoku Line and Chizu Express)
That loud TVs, there are anywhere in Malaysia, in government office, hospital waiting area, stations waiting area, dealership office etc. People here also seems to like blasting their videos on their phones in public.
That small pocket on the head rest in front of you is for you to put your ticket ready for inspection.
At KL Sentral you were diverted to the KTM Komuter platforms (KTM Komuter is Malaysia's equivalent of the old BR Network SouthEast). The Intercity platform could have been congested at the time (there being only two)
You can really see the British influence on the railway infrastructure.
Simple 3 or 4 aspect signals, BR-style shunt indicators, and the overhead wire systems with the quintessentially British Mark 3 Headspan.
Wow malaysian bullet train is so nice😁👍
You've missed Parit Buntar, Nibong Tebal avd various other small but busy stations lol, anyways what a great way to visit Malaysia and talking about out KTM ETS!
Maybe New Zealand could by a similar train because we use 1067mm gauge.
Nice train!
Those trains are really nice and comfortable. Really envious. I wonder what went wrong with European trains, why we can't have nice things ?
wow now only i know there is a foodcourt there in kl sentral 😂
Pardon my train of thoughts, the British built a narrower train track due to cost in Malaysia and also built sub-standard living environment for the HK people when they had taken in so much money in both places. So what are the good things did the British do to these 2 places in the past which till now we are able to see the benefits? Just curious.
at 15:24, i dont think that is flood, but that is a lake or water reservoir.. I have taken KTM ETS ride of the same route few times before and that area still looking the same (full of water)
Ohhh fair enough, when I was looking at the map during the journey it said there was flooding! 😅
All the best ❤
The exotic jungle scenery is actually Palm Oil plantations
always hype to see a new video
8:57 ticket holder
In the English subtitles, @7:38, The Burj Khalifa is spelled Mia Khalifa. I wonder why? Freudian slip anyone?
😂 what an eagle's eye 😂
Still impressive to see the entire Asia region progress so fast while places like the UK still haven't figured out double decker trains yet
We have figured them out in the UK, the conclusion being that our loading gauge is too small for them!
I don't know why you think double decker trains are some sort of advancement? They allow a higher number of passengers per set but have some major drawbacks with accessibility and longer dwelling times. Longer, level trains, with more doors and shorter dwelling times are much more preferable. The UK is really lagging behind with infrastructure, but double decker trains isn't exactly a goal. Electrification on the other hand should be a goal!
@@f.g.9466 Go and have a look in the Netherlands, the country with the busiest rail network in Europe (the UK has the second busiest). Most long-distance trains are double-deckers. The reason is simply a matter of capacity. Not all stations can easily be extended, and running longer trains (12 cars is pretty much the maximum) isn't an option either. And forget about running more trains. Most regional/commuter trains are single-deck, though. There used to be double-deck trains regional trains, but things have changed around a bit.
Before the pandemic, long-distance trains on the main north-west to south-east corridor, which goes through Amsterdam, Utrecht, and Eindhoven, would typically be two sets of six cars double-deck trains. These seat around 600 people each, so a maximum capacity of 1200 seats per train. And they'd run every 15 minutes or so on the busiest routes.
Wait. The UK hasn't finished electrifying its trains yet? I know there are like 7x more tracks there, but still, this was your colony 70 years ago. It's not like Malaysia has been very fast. The double-tracking/electrification/grade-separation project has been going for 30 years, and we're still 5 - 10 years from completion. But the UK seems to be going even slower!
@@danielch6662 only ~33% of the network is electrified in the UK and there is no actual plan to electrify the rest of the network. Including one of the main lines out of central London with frequent suburban and regional services that still run on diesel (Chilterns Main Line). They're now toying around with battery trains because electrification isn't happening.
I always use India, an ex British colony, as an example of extreme contrast. India made a plan and in less than a decade it managed to electrify almost the entire network (they were over 90% last time I checked and on track to hit 100% in the next year excluding only some private freight branches). India's railway network is 3 times bigger than the British one, so size of the network isn't an excuse. I'm not saying that it makes sense to electrify 100% of the British network, some lines are hard to justify, but certainly way more than half of the network should have more frequent services and electrification.
The anglophone countries are all actually quite bad when it comes to investing in railways or public transport in general. Leeds is the largest city in Western Europe without a mass rapid transit system.
13:40 one time when my family got back from Perlis to KL, uhh me and my brother saw someone watching some content... that would be illegal. well that was when we finally reached KL, soo yeah
Am a Malaysian and I have never tried this. Thanks for the info.
Wish a similar train could be in Australia instead of our out of date services
Please make a video of the Urlaubs Express in the summer from Villach when it's hot and by car, just had a ride on it and if it's hot you're in for a surprise. Basically it needs exposure for that price. One positive as a spoiler: the staff is amazing!
Interesting, maybe I'll give it a look! 😁
1:59 Technically not a train line but there's a DLR similar shop at London City Airport . Tower Gateway used to have one but I've never seen it open .
Class 93/2 will also serve ETS Gold or Silver, depending on Class 93/1 or Class 91 Avaliability
Psst In Malaysia you only need to get pass the first gate. Which requires you to have a valid ticket.
Onboarding ETS or EAL on the stations with assumption you know where is your destination. If you miss it, you need to pay at the gate.
Or if random ticket checking and everyone seats accordingly
The second meal “Something else” is Curry Chicken. Locals favorite meal for all races.
As per the flooding, that’s a beautiful lake and the train was traveling over a long bridge. 😅
Does the train run up to 180 at all - you mention its service speed is 140-145? The service speed of the Tilt train in Australia is 160 on narrow gauge.
Hi, how did you book this train? Planning on going from KL to JB next week and could not find an official booking site in my quick search.
because its NOT privatized, they don't have the highly popular and sensible EXPRESS KL-Penang option.
They stop at each and every station.....
Watching today's video on a train while you watch your train video on a train
Great video. I was wondering if you were ok as it has been some time since your last offering.
Nice video.. 👍♥
So should i choose Platinum A or B or C or D or E or F ??? Which coach is good for 1 adult and 1 kid ??? Please advise ?? I am going from KL to Padang Basar
That place that was surrounded by water is called bukit merah laketown resort. And that water is not flood water, actually the train is crossing the middle of the lake.
Two decent meals on a train? The UK could never!
even a 4-hour flights in business class won't provide 2 meals lol. this is insane to stuff so much food into your stomach with 2 hours between the meals (for an average human)
UK struggles to provide a decent meal in general 😂
@@raics101 British rainwater for 5 o’clock tea is real yummy, isn’t it? 😝
@@Apawcalypse_Meow That, or lukewarm beer, take your pick :)
@@raics101 I have tried curing my throat by drinking a microwaved beer :)
Well, that’s an experience indeed. Whole new sensation. It was disgusting at first but then I’ve discovered new layers of taste. Nowadays I usually have nothing against lukewarm beers in general lol.
PS my throat really got better after that potion. And I’m even not nearly any British
5:38 yes you said it. Anyone could just join in for a free ride during this walk down, there’s no control or anything at all.
Kuala Lumpur ( KL) population is 2 million, NOT 8 million🫡 Klang Valley ( KL+ Selangor ) has population of 8 millions
I maybe have smth interresting for you. In Cologne, Germany you can catch an TRIRE1 to Essen HBF or Dortmund HBF . You can catch old trains on that route. Or maybe an new one...
that boarding makes VIA rails pre boarding line ups look logical lol
This ETS is not malaysian bullet train, its just normal train that replace old train. It 1 of our new train that just faster from old train.
The trains are Chinese , supplied by China Railway Construction Corp. They have projects in multiple countries and part of the Belt and Road initiative. The second largest construction company in the world. Number 1 is China State Construction & Engineering Corp. China used more concrete in 3 years than the entire history of US. That’s how big they are.
Menarik
Glad it's not just me who finds KL Sentral totally confusing.
It's a real mess!
These Malaysian trains are really distant cousins of the German ICE trains. CRRC got very good at copying and modifying them for their own domestic high speed and then began selling them onwards to regional buyers
You know, you should try Romania's "Huțulca" communist train! It runs on narrow gauge and is a very scenic ride. I've been there 2 days ago, and I loved it! ❤
Come the year 2027 visitors to msia can experiece newly completed east cost railway with high speed rail.The speed is around 200 km perhr😊
Wikipedia says maximum speed will be 160km/h.
How was the ridequality with such speeds on a 1000mm track?
Thank you.
Well designed train
Nothing can beat European Trains and of course Japan's finest bullet train Sinkhasen 🙏🏻
Doesn't look a bad service but the experience in KL was very poor.
I love KL, but you have to be careful for scammers, and you better take a "teksi" at night .. //
ETS is enough for Malaysia.🎉
Taipei Main Station has a Taiwan Rail souvenir shop
10:36 Tropical it may be, but it's no Weybridge!
This is not exactly a bullet train.
But as a Malaysian, I'm thankful that we have ETS.