Frequent travellers will probably agree that the e-hailing experience at Terminal 1 of KLIA could use some improvements. The good news is that’s exactly what Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB) has announced. The company said that it “is introducing a refreshed e-hailing pick-up experience with a series of facility enhancements and operational improvements” at said terminal “designed to make passenger arrivals smoother, faster and more convenient”.

From the post on its official Facebook page, Level 1 of KLIA Terminal 1 now has “comfortable waiting areas”, or lounges, as the spaces themselves are labelled as. There’s also “self-service kiosks to book your ride and let your driver know exactly where to pick you up”, as well as “live screens tracking your driver’s arrival”. The tracker in question makes use of License Plate Recognition (LPR) tech integrated with a Passenger Information Display System (PIDS). On-ground marshals will also be around to assist passengers and facilitate traffic flow.

On one hand, MAHB says that beyond improving the passenger experience, the implementation will also help “deter illegal e-hailing activities”. But on the flip side, the company says this comes at the cost of a RM3 entry fee for the legit e-hailing drivers for every entry into the designated passenger pick-up area. The company says that this is “to sustain the continued operation and maintenance of these enhanced facilities and systems”.

Beyond the new entry fee, MAHB also says that there’s a 10-minute waiting time limit for pick-ups and drop-offs, with fines for staying for longer than that. It’s unclear if this is the same fine of between RM10 and RM100 that’s enforced for the departure and arrival levels by the Vehicle Access Management System. Either way, congestion is usually not particularly a problem for the e-hailing level anyway, compared to finding the assigned vehicle.

(Source: MAHB [1], [2])

Updated 3:29 pm, Wed, 5 August 26