Reasons given for the fare hike – which disproportionately affects foreign passengers – include an increase in maintenance costs and the general price of goods.
Langkawi ferry fares from the Peninsula to the island will be increased by an additional RM3.00 to RM3.50 from August 5, 2022, but only for Malaysians holding the MyKad card. Foreigners will see a considerably higher increase in fares.
The return fare from Kuala Perlis to Langkawi for adults will now be set at RM21, compared to the previous RM18, while a return trip from Kuala Kedah will cost RM26.50, compared to RM23 before.
According to Langkawi Ferry Line Ventures, which operates 17 ferries, foreigners will now have to fork out RM27 per adult for a Kuala Perlis roundtrip, an increase of RM9, and RM19.50 for children, an increase of RM6.50. No reason was offered for the much higher increase for foreigners. The fare was previously the same for all passengers, and it’s unclear why foreigners now have to pay a fare that’s over 30% higher than the fare Malaysians for passage on the same ferry.
Local Langkawi residents however, will continue to pay RM15 for adults and RM13 for seniors when boarding from Kuala Perlis.
The further Kuala Kedah line will now cost RM26.50 for local adults, an increase of RM3.50, while Langkawi residents will continue to pay RM20 per adult. Foreigners will have to pay RM34.50, an increase of RM11.50, the highest fare hike recorded.
Reasons for the fare hike – the first in 15 years – include an increase in maintenance costs and the general price of goods, said the ferry operator.
Capt (Rtd) Baharin Baharom, the operations manager of Langkawi Ferry Line Ventures, said the two ferry lines have offered the country’s cheapest ferry fares at 86 sen per nautical mile (Kuala Perlis) and 77 sen per nautical mile (Kuala Kedah).
He explained that the old fares were based on an industrial diesel price of 83 sen per litre in 2007 compared to RM4.17 per litre today.
“We also cannot escape salary increases in line with wage policies set by the government from time to time,” he said in a statement.
Source: FMT
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