7 things you need to know about Chan Sow Lin Interchange that is actually good for you

Trains are now operating back as the Ampang Line and the Sri Petaling Line, with both lines plying the shared sector between Sentul Timur and Chan Sow Lin. There is no more need to change trains at Chan Sow Lin if you are travelling to and from the shared sector.

From 17 July 2016, passengers travelling from Sentul Timur to Ampang will need to change trains at Chan Sow Lin. How can this be actually good for everyone?

1. Not everyone needs to change trains.

With the split of services, the line between Sentul Timur and Putra Heights is now known as the Sri Petaling Line, and the line between Chan Sow Lin and Ampang is now knows as the Ampang Line. Only those travelling on the Ampang Line need to change trains.

2. No more changing of trains at Sri Petaling.

With the split of services, the line between Sentul Timur and Sri Petaling is also now on the same new signalling system as the extension to Putra Heights, allowing Sri Petaling Line trains to run straight through. No changing of trains at Sri Petaling anymore!

3. New trains are now running into the city centre.

The new AMY trains will make commute along the Sri Petaling Line more comfortable, with better air-conditioning, individual seats and improved passenger information system.

4. Transferring is very easy.

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As compared to older interchanges in Kuala Lumpur, Chan Sow Lin is extremely easy as trains will stop parallel to each other, and you only need to walk across the platform to make your transfer – that’s less than 20 footsteps. And no, there is no increase of fares with the split in services as the RapidKL fare structure is integrated seamlessly across all lines operated by them, meaning you get charged by the total distance travelled and not by the number of times you change trains.

To travel from Sentul Timur to Ampang and vice-versa:

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To travel from Putra Heights to Ampang and vice-versa:

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If you are travelling from Ampang:

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5. The whole line’s capacity has the potential to be doubled now.

Contrary to many comments saying that trains will be more crowded now with the transfer, the split of services makes the whole line capable of running twice as many trains as compared to when the lines were shared between Sentul Timur and Chan Sow Lin, meaning there is potential to actually be less crowds on the train in the two branches.

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Assuming a headway of 2 minutes, if the line were to operate on the old method of sharing the line between Sentul Timur and Chan Sow Lin, the headway on both branch lines will be halved at 4 minutes as each train has to alternate from the main line.

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Assuming a headway of 2 minutes, if the line were to operate on the new method of running independent lines, the headway on the whole network will remain at 2 minutes as each train does not have to wait for another entering from a different line and sharing the same track. The whole network enjoys the higher 2 minute frequency, and capacity is doubled on the 2 branch lines.

*This is just a theoretical explanation by RailTravel Station and not representative of the frequency that RapidKL may run their trains at.

which means…

6. No more boarding the wrong train.

With the split in services, there is no more shared sector between the Sri Petaling and Ampang Lines, so you definitely know that you are getting on the right train now – since it’s the only direction.

Gone are the days where you have to look out for the train’s destination on the platform or train itself, or unsure whether to run in to a train that’s about to depart and having to ask fellow passengers about the destination of the train. Even worse when there’s no announcement at Chan Sow Lin and you actually get on the wrong line.

And since you always get on the first train that arrives…

7. Total waiting time is now shorter.

Now that you don’t have to wait for the next train at the platform when the current one is not going to your destination, your waiting time of the train becomes shorter. On top of that, the frequency of both lines at Chan Sow Lin will almost match each other – you won’t have to wait for a frequency of 2 trains now if you miss one! On a good day, which is everyday, just hop across the platform at Chan Sow Lin where a train is waiting for you already!

Travelling on the Sri Petaling and Ampang Lines now will be easier and potentially faster. Remember to cross over to the middle platform for the train to Ampang!