The Shuttle 61/62 is no longer in operation.
This post was made before 1 July 2015. Trains which used to terminate at Woodlands CIQ now terminate at JB Sentral in Johor Bahru. Use the Shuttle Tebrau to get to and from Woodlands CIQ in Singapore.
To transition back into our purpose for a Malaysian and Singaporean railway blog, let’s have a ride on an original Japanese train here.
14 coaches of the famous overnight Blue Train are in Malaysia after reaching their service lifespan in Japan, being donated by the Japanese Government. They used to ply the Fuji, Hayabusa and Sakura Limited Expresses. Originally running from 19 December 2011 with 7 coaches for the Malayan Tiger Train rake with 7 spare, 5 coaches remain active today and 3 are used for the Shuttle between Woodlands CIQ (Singapore) JB Sentral and Gemas (62up/61dn).
The shuttle is jam packed with passengers departing Woodlands CIQ in the evening and runs almost empty all the way from JB Sentral to Gemas. The same crowd applies vice versa.
A re-liveried 14 Series coach with the KTM Intercity logo.
For comparison, here is a 14 Series coach in Japan, also retired from service.
Ticket for the journey. The fare for this shuttle is charged as a second class seat without the seat fee.
Currently, the Hayabusa name is used for Tohoku Shinkansen services between Tokyo and Shin-Aomori.
The KTM ticket seems to fit well into the JR West ticket sleeve.
A brief stop at Kempas Baru. The original destination boards came along to Malaysia with the coaches.
A Toshiba and Hitachi made 24 Class locomotive leads the Japanese rake.
The original seat number plates remain in the coach.
3 types of seats are available on this rake. I recommend taking the first coach as it reclines the best and was sold as Dream Car in Japan for an additional fee.
The rake resting at Gemas station awaiting her turnaround to form 61dn.
An EMD 25 Class leads 61dn back to Woodlands CIQ.
The modern Gemas platforms don’t make the almost 40 year old coaches look out of place.
The Fuji Hayabusa enters Singapore with a full crowd on board (look into the window).
The Shuttle 61/62 is no longer in operation.
Hi, I am Japanese and I’m interested in Japanese train now running abroad.
I want to know whether this 61/62 train is still using Japanese blue train or not.
I searched on the official web sight and it says there are still 61 and 62 shuttle trains.
However, the timetable completely changed.
Now 61 departs from Gemas at 15:15 and arrive at JB central 19:50 and 62 departs from JB central at 7:30 and arrive at Gemas at 12:22.
Can you tell me does this train consist of Japanese Railway coaches?
Thank you
Hello, thank you for visiting. The timetable has changed since 10 October 2015, and is still using the Blue Train coaches, although currently cut to 2 coaches as of 3 days ago. This consists of the grey reserved seat car (in JR), and the blue non-reserved seat car (in JR). Tickets may be bought on the spot as all seats are not reserved on a shuttle train.
Thank you for your swift reply.
Ok, I’m glad to hear that JR train is still used now.
I’m now living Japan, but I am now planning to go to malaysia and take 61 and 62 train next February or March. Do you think this train will still use JR coarches? Or are there another timetable changes by next March?
I followed the link and found the article about malayan tiger express but that train service stopped last year, didn’t it?
Thank you
I am not sure if there will be a timetable change of if the coaches will be swapped out for maintenance then. The Malayan Tiger Train service has stopped about 2 years ago, and 9 out of 14 coaches are stranded at Tumpat yard since the Kelantan floods which closed the East Coast Line for about half a year. There is still a missing link between Kemubu and Gua Musang, with relay buses from the Tren Rakyat Timuran to transfer passengers from Gua Musang northwards to other destinations.
You may find more information about other coaches in this post: http://railtravelstation.com/2014/12/17/malayan-tiger-train-ex-limited-express-fuji-hayabusa/
Thank you so much for details.
I really appreciate the information. So the 61 and 62 train is the only Japanese trains now running in Malaysia, right?
In Japan, the last limited express blue train called Hokutosei which used to run from Tokyo(Ueno station) to Sapporo(in Hokkaido) stopped running in this August and the last express blue train called Hamanasu which is now running from Aomori to Sapporo will quit its service next March. It means blue train in Japan will completely abolish in half an year.
Therefore, the blue train coaches are so rare things even for the Japanese now.
Thank you
You’re welcome. There is a DD51 locomotive operating for a private construction company, EMRAIL, which is very difficult to spot nowadays. It is found on the northern sector.
Good news – the coach that was taken out of service is back. The shuttle operates with 3 coaches as per normal now.
Thank you so much for letting me know that good news!
I stay in JB.
I want to get chicket for Shuttre 62.
How can I get it ,and timetable for KTM(include the Blue train)
You cannot pre-book tickets for the Shuttle 62 – just turn up around half an hour before departure. You may find the timetable here: http://railtravelstation.com/bangkok-to-singapore-by-rail/timetable/