PETALING JAYA: The tide turned for a ferry operator in Langkawi barely hours after it announced a fare increase, which prompted a stern response from the Transport Ministry,
Earlier yesterday, Langkawi Ferry Line Ventures Sdn Bhd, which runs a ferry service between Langkawi and Kuala Perlis, as well as Kuala Kedah, issued a statement that fares would go up starting next month.
It listed all the price increases, which ranged from RM3 to RM3.50, depending on the route. The quantum of increase is higher for non-Malaysians, ranging from RM5.50 to RM10.50.
But by 2pm yesterday, Transport Minister Anthony Loke posted on Facebook, describing it as a “hasty” move which he found to be “regrettable”.
“I find it deeply regretful with the hasty decision in announcing the fare increase. I am warning all ferry operators that they will be ineligible for the diesel subsidy if they increase fares, especially for local residents and domestic tourists.”
“It would be better for all operators to immediately retract this announcement and engage in discussions with the Transport Ministry soon,” he wrote.
Loke said that his ministry had received an approval in principle from the Finance Ministry on Friday to provide diesel subsidy assistance to ferry operators on major islands across the country, including Langkawi, starting from Jan 1.
In an immediate response to Loke’s statement, Langkawi Ferry Line Ventures announced that it was dropping its plan to introduce the new fares.
“Following the advice from the Transport Ministry and the Kedah government, the fare hike for Malaysians starting Jan 1 is cancelled,” said its operations manager Lt Commander (Rtd) Norhafiz Abdul Wahid.
“However, the fare increase remains for foreign visitors,” he said.
Under its initial plan, Malaysians taking its Langkawi-Kuala Perlis-Langkawi route will have to pay RM3 more (from RM21 to RM24).
The rate for children was supposed to go up from RM16 to RM19.
As for the Langkawi-Kuala Kedah-Langkawi route, the new rate was to go up by RM3.50 (from RM26.50 to RM30 for adults) and RM20.50 to RM24 for children.
Non-citizens taking Langkawi-Kuala Perlis-Langkawi route will see an increase of RM8 for adults (from RM27 to RM35) and RM5.50 for children (from RM19.50 to RM25).
For the Langkawi-Kuala Kedah-Langkawi route, the fare for non-citizens is increased by RM10.50 for adults (from RM34.50 to RM45) and an increase of RM6.50 from RM25.50 to RM32 for children.
