Photo: KK SHAM/The Star
A TOTAL of 55 Smart Selangor buses will be fitted with Visit Selangor Year 2025 advertisements to promote the state's attractions to local and international tourists.
Selangor local government and tourism committee chairman Datuk Ng Suee Lim said the advertisements will be placed on the back panel of the buses in phases.
"This is because the buses still need to operate on their designated routes. The total cost for the project is estimated at around RM250,000.
"It costs about RM10,000 to place the advertisements on old buses as there is a need to repaint it, while it will cost RM1,200 for new buses to fit the the advertisements on the back panel," he said during the launch of the Smart Selangor buses' back panel advertisement at the Bangunan SUK in Shah Alam, Selangor.
The launch was officiated by Selangor Mentri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari. The advertisements showcase tourist attractions such as Batu Caves in Gombak, Sate Kajang in Kajang, Sky Mirror in Kuala Selangor, and the paddy fields in Sekinchan, Selangor.
Currently, Selangor has 160 Smart Selangor buses operating on more than 50 routes. More than 60 million Smart Selangor bus passengers were recorded last year.
"The buses will promote attractions that are outside of the bus routes' municipality. For example, buses in Shah Alam will promote Sekinchan's attractions, while Kajang buses will promote Batu Caves in Gombak.
"Besides promoting these attractions to international tourists, we also want locals to visit these attractions, which is in line with the state’s domestic tourism campaign slogan, 'Nak Bercuti? Pusing Selangor Dulu!'," Ng said, adding that he hoped the advertisements will help boost tourism to reach the targeted eight million tourists during Visit Selangor Year 2025.
Ng added that there are also efforts to promote Selangor tourism at roadshows held in Shenzhen and Kunming in China as well as medical tourism in Surabaya, Indonesia.
"For the first quarter of this year, we have recorded 1.78 million tourists, and the majority of them came from China, Singapore, Indonesia, India, and Japan. We are confident that we can achieve the targeted seven million tourists in Selangor this year," he said.
