On The Train, Hikayat SK2 Chapter 2

Saya katakan hikayat kerana ianya cerita yang bermula dari filosofi dan tabiat perniagaan KTMB yg bercelaru disebabkan pegawai atasan yg kurang cekap dan mahir. 

Firstly, let me introduce myself as far as railway service in Malaysia is concern. First and foremost I am a railway fan that have been a loyal customer to KTMB. For 13 years I have taken the good, the bad and the ugly of KTM Komuter service every day to work. On top of that since I was 5 years old I had been using the intercity services for my travels in Malaysia. At least I would take an average of 4 times a year to travel in Malaysia by train when most of my friends and family members do not even want to think of taking one. Of course over time I met the like minded personalities yg gila keretapi like me. We grew up in a group as train fans and occasionally organise our own trips to Kelantan or up north by train.  We even did CSR projects with the train communities along the east coast line. We go nuts with anything about trains. In short, we are not your normal Malaysian who takes the train to balik kampung. We are fans who love everything about trains. I am not asking for KTMB to treat us like kings but don’t you think we deserve a decent treatment if not better like any other customers? Well! KTMB do not think so.

The trigger of this hikayat adalah our pengalaman yg ingin menyewa SK2 untuk aktiviti merasa perkhidmatan tersebut sebelum ia ditamatkan. Berdasarkan kepada iklan diatas kami telah menghubongi pihak KTMB and setelah berbincnag telah dipersetujui dgn bayaran deposit untuk menyewa SK2 untuk perjalan kami dari JB Sentral ke Tumpat. Memandangkan SK2 itu akan balik semula kosong pihak KTMB yg kami telah berurusan telah mempelawa kami untuk menggunakan SK2 untuk perjalanan balik dgn sedikit diskaun. Kami telah bersetuju.

Sebagai peminat keretapi yg teruja nak naik SK2 kami telah mebuat bayaran dan persediaan untuk perjalanan. I mean we came from all walks of life and most of us are working. Thus we need to apply for our leaves and to make additional arrangement to travel to JB to board the SK2. Mind you one of us has to travel from Terrenganu. All these were done in excitement and anticipation of the ride. To railway fans like us, this is once in a lifetime opportunity. However, it was not meant to be, just because a certain senior management of KTMB who is clueless about his role and responsibility. I say clueless because he did not even know the service exist and the price for the service. Just imagine you as a worker trying to create a business for your business unit and your boss did not event give a damn. We were made known that he does not even go to meetings. What kind of management style is this?

In fact, he got to know about us renting the SK2 by accident. It happened that the SK2 was wanted by KTMB’s management on the same day of our proposed travel date. To cut the story short he did all things possible to deny us the service at the same time saving his skin. Among others, he asked for us to list down our occupation. What!!!????. the first time in history I was asked for my occupation when I want to use a transportation service to travel. I have boarded train services overseas and not to mention the flights that I have taken and not even once they ask my occupation. 

Well, personally I am no stranger to this misadventure with KTMB services and management style. If you use google to search the Net to find all the complaints about KTMB and its services you can do your PhD. Worse on FB and other social media. I am not surprised if some of their staff are also fed-up with the incoherent management direction. From the many postings and based on my own experience using the service I deduce the followings;

1. No proper strategy. If any they are flip flop and poorly communicated to their staff
2. No or lack of proper communication strategy especially in managing crisis
3. No coordination in business and almost all silos. Clearly indicated by their tagline On Time Every Time
4. Silo loyalty programme if any. Some do not even know the meaning of customer loyalty
5. Clueless top management for Intercity Business

Last but not least for the sake of train service in Malaysia and KTMB I’d love to be proven wrong.

To be continued.

On The Train, 11 May 2017, KL Sentral - Gemas - JB. But denied the use of SK2 Chapter 1

This trip, apart from our trip to Bangkok in March, was meant to be a major trip for us this year. As we had planned to book the SK2 from JB to Tumpat. It would have been an Orient Express Malaysian style ride for us the railway fans. We plan Allah decides. A certain JJ at KTMB was ordained to become the rouge that spoilt it for us. Of course I am looking at this positively as because of the cancellation now I could attend my daughters commencement ceremony at the Majestic Hotel. Still the fact remains that JJ did not know what he is doing. He is. to protect his ass,  is alienating the rail fans further from KTMB. Frankly I do not know how the Intercity service going to make any money with this kind of management and attitudes. Any half decent managers would know the last thing they want to do is to chase away their customers. Not only that, their loyal customers who had been using the service good or bad for years. In my case a solid 13 years every day using the service to work. On top of that been going around Malaysia using the intercity trains when others would not even think or mention KTMB.

I had bought my train tickets to JB and booked us a hotel for a night earlier because of the proposed trip. I could have cancelled but did not as I love this bloody train so much so here I am with my dear wife on the ETS to Gemas and later to take the shuttle to JB. Going to JB by train now is a also a mess only KTMB could create. So inconvenience for the users. The users have been guinea pigs with their constant changes in train schedule. Mostly, all defy logic in management and customer relationship management. Yes they have been in red all these while, in fact they still are, but to treat your customers like shit is not making any sense at all. If traveling is going from point A to B KTMB is losing big time to the like of Airasia and bus express. For instance the fare from JB to KL by bus is only RM35 where by train it is RM52.

Despite my frustration I am enjoying this ride. The ETS is on time trying to keep to the promise of their tagline, On Time Every Time which was a sick joke that KTMB produced when their services were pathetic. When I first saw the bunting with that tagline I could not stop laughing ha ha ha. In fact I laughed right there in front of their ticket counter. It is slightly better now to their credit but that tagline is still a big joke with a punch line blowing in their face ha ha ha. I am so sorry for them. 

Well, we arrived at Gemas on time and straight away disembarked to wait for our shuttle from JB that also arrived on time. The shuttle was an INKA trains which were used by the now defunct Express Rakyat. I like the coaches, pleasant, with power points and modern flush VC.

The Shuttle 41 departed Gemas at 2.53pm. Initially the thought of doing what I do best while on the train prevailed but then after awhile I somewhat felt lethargic and sat down at my assigned seat. I spent my time playing with my handphone. Playing meant checking my FB accounts and chatting via Whatsapp.  However after Segamat I dozed off for a bit. I woke up just after Bekok. Knowing there was not a buffet car onboard I just sat at my seat looking out watching Johor passing by. 

The train stop longer at Layang-Layang that I thought we were crossing with another train. But no. The evening light was really brilliant shining onto the station that I quickly took out my camera to take a few shots.

The train eventually departed Layang Layang and later did cross with the JB Gemas shuttle at Rengam. After Rengam I was just not in a mood to do anything else but playing with my phone. I guess getting closer to JB Sentral and realising we were not going to board SK2 did play on my mood a bit. A bit of frustration rather than angry.

The train approached JB Sentral at around 6.40 pm and subsequently parked at 6.49 pm. Sam and I rushed out and up into JB.