Thursday 28 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Feb 9): Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) is expecting to see a nearly 40% increase to 180,000 in daily passenger numbers passing through the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and klia2 in Sepang during the Chinese New Year period from Feb 14 to 18.

"In catering to this surge, we will be placing more resources on the ground — not just by us, but also by other agencies at the airport," KLIA head of operations Mohd Arif Jaafar said in a statement today.

The airport operator is working closely with various authorities including the police to ensure passengers travelling through KLIA will experience a smooth journey during the upcoming festive season.

"We have been in close talks with other stakeholders at the airport not only for the festive season, but also in support of our ambition in becoming a service leader. However, our immediate concern now is the Chinese New Year period," MAHB managing director Datuk Badlisham Ghazali said.

To ensure smoother traffic flow at the kerbside, for one, there is now strict enforcement of a two-minute limit pick-up time.

According to Mohd Arif, during peak periods, about 55 vehicles per minute will pass through the terminal.

Installation of bollards at the pick-up lanes will also prevent any unauthorised parking that will contribute to traffic congestion.

"Towing zones have also been introduced within the airport area to discourage indiscriminate parking that will endanger other motorists. Security patrol will also be increased during this time to ensure passenger security," said Mohd Arif.

Badlisham said the airport operator is not only looking at traffic management.

He noted that the self-service bag drop facility will be fully available at klia2 starting next week, which will cut processing time at the check-in counters to one minute.

"And at the KLIA main terminal, Malaysia Airlines has committed that all of their 74 check-in counters will be fully manned during the festive season," he said.

At the same time, two cross-border immigration counters have been added to cater to the increase in transfer passengers.

MAHB shares ended the morning session one sen or 0.11% higher at RM9.06 today, with 3.28 million shares done, bringing a market capitalisation of RM15.1 billion.

 

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