'More tickets sold than at Hari Raya': KL transport hub packed ahead of election

With under 24 hours left until polling day, Kuala Lumpur’s main public transport hub, Terminal Bersepadu Selatan (TBS), has been flooded with travellers eager to make it home to vote in the 15th general election (GE15) tomorrow.

There were long queues at ticket counters, with travellers sitting on the floor waiting for their buses due to a lack of seats to accommodate their numbers.

TBS managing director Roslan Sahriff said they expected over 25,000 passengers to depart from the terminal today on over 1,000 buses to various destinations in the east coast, as well as the north and south regions.

He said the peak period would be between 5pm and 10pm.

"I think there have been more tickets sold compared to Hari Raya Aidilfitri, if I were to make a guess. The last time we sold this many tickets was during Raya 2019, as we were hit by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021," he added.

As many as 20 companies had prepared additional buses to meet last-minute demand.

Badrul Amin Mohd Ramizu, 25, a traveller waiting to go back to Kuala Lipis, Pahang, to vote, said he had travelled to Kuala Lumpur from Penang to return home together with his younger sibling.

First-time voter Alis Nur An-Nis’sa Samsul Bahari said she bought her ticket back to Terengganu a month earlier, adding that it had been the last ticket available online at that time.

Meanwhile, travellers began pouring into the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang at around 10.30am with many choosing to fly at midday. 

Batik Air and Firefly, two airlines offering flights out of the airport, opened more counters to handle passenger check-ins, besides encouraging the use of kiosk machines.

A Firefly spokesman told Bernama that the airline had sent reminders to travellers to check in earlier to avoid congestion at the airport.

Contractor Fad Mus, 42, said he was willing to take an earlier flight this morning from Johor Bahru, Johor, to transit at the airport before continuing on to Kota Bahru, Kelantan, in order to vote there tomorrow.

"I bought my ticket at the end of last month as I didn’t want to have a headache being stuck in traffic if I drove. 

"This election is important because there are too many parties and coalitions contesting, so I want to do my part to help form a government," he added.