Kota Kinabalu MP urges wider use of BAS.MY as awareness remains low
by Mariah Doksil · Borneo Post OnlineKOTA KINABALU (April 4): Kota Kinabalu MP Datuk Chan Foong Hin has called for greater public awareness and usage of the BAS.MY city bus service, noting that many residents remain unfamiliar with the initiative despite its rollout last year.
Speaking during a bus ride with senior citizens from the Luyang Senior Citizens Activity Centre at KK Sentral on Saturday, Chan said the programme aims to improve accessibility while encouraging the public to adopt cashless public transport.
The BAS.MY service, widely recognised as the “pink bus”, was introduced in Kota Kinabalu in September last year on a pre-launch basis, before beginning operations on April 1 with two routes namely S01 and S05.
“From my observation, this service is still not widely known among Kota Kinabalu residents. As such, I took the initiative to collaborate with the Luyang senior citizens’ activity centre,” he said.
Under the initiative, Chan sponsored 300 senior citizens with transport cards worth RM10 each, enabling them to use the service free of charge.
He explained that both senior citizens and students are eligible to purchase the card for RM10 and enjoy complimentary rides.
For the general public, the monthly pass is priced at RM30 and can be topped up at KK Sentral. Passengers without the card may also pay using Visa cards, as the system operates on a fully cashless basis.
The BAS.MY counter at KK Sentral is open daily from 6am to 5pm.
Looking ahead, Chan said the service is expected to expand progressively to cover eight routes, with updates to be announced via the BAS.MY Kota Kinabalu Facebook page. He expressed hope that all routes would be fully operational by July.
“At present, there are 10 buses serving the two existing routes. Once all eight routes are in operation, a total of 48 buses will be deployed,” he said.
The service is operated under a concession by the Ministry of Transport Malaysia, and Chan urged the public to make full use of the facility.
“If the public does not use it, it would be a waste,” he added.