The best and worst interchanges of the KL metro

Standing-room only on the Laos-China Railway, new airport plan in NW Bali, revived railways (again) in the Philippines, and more construction and transport news in Southeast Asia.

Greetings from Johor Bahru. I was last here in 2018, and it was a city that was gentrifying the old town while building apartments for people who live in Singapore. I called it the Shenzhentrification of Johor Bahru. I will have some articles about JB coming up.

This week I went from Penang to KL before arriving in JB. While I was in KL I had a look at a few more metro stations. I was going to write an annual metro report, but I ended up writing about interchanges instead.

KL is building out an impressive urban rail transit network, but a lot of mistakes have been made along the way. I visited some of the worst interchanges in Southeast Asia, and also one of the best.

[in KL via the train from Butterworth (Penang).]

Latest Posts At Future Southeast Asia

Improving the interchanges and connections of the KL metro transit system

News

🇰🇭 Cambodia

• Construction down post-Covid

🇮🇩 Indonesia

• Indonesia persuades Japan to join developing smart city system for IKN Nusantara

[Updated: Nusantara - New Capital City of Indonesia]

• Plans for new airport in NW Bali opposed

[Updated: North Bali International Airport]

🇱🇦 Laos

• Laos-China Railway proposes standing tickets

• Khamsavath Station in Vientiane Capital ready to operate soon

🇲🇾 Malaysia

• Penang announces Bayan Lepas LRT pre-qualification stage [NSTTV]

[Updated: Bayan Lepas LRT]

• Only new, non-priority projects to be put off under austerity measures, says minister

• China-built East Coast Rail Link project continues in Malaysia

[Updated: East Coast Rail Link]

🇲🇲 Myanmar

• Myanmar building projects worth $1.3bn frozen since army took power

• Dali-Baoshan railway to start operations on Friday, as the China-Myanmar international rail corridor achieves a major breakthrough

🇵🇭 Philippines

• Marcos, Jr. admin to continue Mindanao Railway, Davao's High Priority Bus System

[Updated: Mindanao Railway]

• ‘Full speed ahead,’ Marcos seeks revival of Panay railways

[Updated: Panay Railway]

• PBBM wants to revive Cebu railway, vows to implement BRT

• Manila to Legazpi City in 4.5 hours? The PNR Bicol could make it reality

🇸🇬 Singapore

• Johor Sultan visits RTS construction site in Woodlands

• Jurong boy to super realtor: how Aric Lim sells million-dollar homes to Chinese buyers

🇹🇭 Thailand

• MRTA says Orange Line bid to resume

• BMTA gets nod to seek loans despite mounting debt

• Chiang Mai’s 1-month pledge to clear dead power cables

🇹🇱 Timor-Leste

• NTT, Timor-Leste discuss free-trade zone in Timor Island

🇻🇳 Vietnam

• In Vietnam, large-scale infrastructure projects confronted by sky-high building material prices

• Three operation control centres for Long Thanh Airport get green light

[Updated: Long Thanh International Airport]

• Cua Dai beach restored from erosion