KANGAR: The automated barrier gate system, installed at the Kuala Perlis jetty terminal, would start operation in January next year, with its trial period will commence on Oct 1.
Northern Region Marine Department director Captain Abdul Samad Shaik Osman said the new system was introduced as an effort to improve the terminal’s management and provide comfort to ferry commuters.
He said according to statistics, 60 per cent of the five million tourists went to Langkawi through Kuala Perlis.
“It is our responsibility to ensure a more systematic flow of visitors.
“On top of that, the system is aimed at collecting date of ferry passengers who would have to pass the scanning device. We will be able to identify those boarding the ferries for safety purpose.
“Likewise, when we board an airplane, we are required to provide details when purchasing the tickets.
“This is to ensure that we are able to verify the identity of the passengers in the event of untoward incidents,” he said when met at the terminal.
He said currently, ferry commuters were required to fill a form at the ticket counters, but this was often overlooked when the jetty was overcrowded.
“The same applies to online ticket purchase. The ticket counters would also be upgraded and passengers be required to furnish their identification document or passport to facilitate the purchasing process.
“We will also able to determine the actual number of passengers boarding the ferries. We don’t want to people to think that we oversold tickets denying some passengers of the seats on the ferry when in fact, there were some parents who had refused to buy tickets for their children,” he said.
Abdul Samad said the system was also aimed at disciplining ferry users to prevent congestion at the terminal.
“For instance, there were people who arrived at 8am but bought the 11am tickets. The others who were there to catch the earlier ferry, say, the 9am ride, had to put up with the crowd.
“With this system, ticket holders are only allowed to enter the area an hour before departure. We don’t want the congestion problem to recur,” he said.
He said the public could plan their travel by purchasing tickets online.
“We created the platform (online) in 2012, but unfortunately, only five percent of the commuters had used this method,” he said.
