ECRL fares expected in October, ticket sales targeted for November
Phase 1 was 98.16% complete as of September, with Malaysia Rail Link confident of starting commercial operations in mid-December 2026.
Malaysia Rail Link Sdn Bhd (MRL) expects an October announcement on East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) fares and is targeting November for the start of ticket sales. Commercial services are scheduled to begin in mid-December 2026, chief executive officer Datuk Seri Darwis Abdul Razak said.
Speaking at a briefing for media editors on operational readiness, Darwis said the Transport Ministry was expected to announce the fares. He anticipated dynamic, affordable pricing below airfares but slightly above bus fares.
The initial timetable would offer 12 daily return trips on Monday to Thursday, rising to 14 on Friday to Sunday. Darwis said MRL was satisfied with progress on Phase 1, linking Kota Bharu and Gombak, and remained confident of meeting its commercial operations target.
An ECRL comprehensive inspection train recently travelled non-stop over 519km between Gombak and Kota Bharu, taking three hours and 19 minutes and reaching 160kph. Darwis said this demonstrated the railway's capacity for an express service taking less than four hours via Gombak-KotaSAS-Kuala Terengganu-Kota Bharu.
The railway spans 665km through Kelantan, Terengganu and Pahang, connecting to Selangor. Once services begin, the journey between Kota Bharu and Gombak is expected to take about four hours, compared with around seven hours by road.
