The disabled community will soon have the convenience of enjoying free train and bus rides for services provided by Prasarana Malaysia Bhd (Prasarana) starting from Feb 1 with the OKU SMILE pass.
Announced by Transport Minister Anthony Loke on Dec 21 last year, the OKU SMILE pass caters specifically to disabled people as part of the free ride initiative and has been confirmed by Prasarana on Sunday (Jan 14).
Prasarana mentioned that the pass applies to all existing OKU concession card holders and new applicants and will begin activation and new applications on Jan 15, 2024. The pass will then enable OKU users to enjoy free rides from Feb 1, 2024.
Criteria for subscription were also detailed by Prasarana, indicating that existing OKU concession card holders can activate their cards at various Rapid KL LRT, MRT, Monorail, and BRT counters from Jan 15. The pass will also be made available at selected Rapid KL bus hubs such as Pasar Seni, Chow Kit, KLCC, Sri Nilam, Puchong Utama, Pearl Point, Sunway Pyramid, Greenwood, and Seksyen 2 Shah Alam.
For those in Penang, they can find the pass at the Rapid Penang headquarters at Lorong Kulit, Weld Quay bus terminal, Komtar, Bukit Jambul, Balik Pulau, Bukit Mertajam, Kompleks Dato Kailan Kepala Batas, and Penang Sentral. Those in Kuantan can find the pass at the Bandar Kuantan bus stop.
To use the OKU SMILE pass, cardholders must ensure that they have a minimum of RM5 in their existing pass. For those whose concession cards have expired, they can apply for new ones. For applicants without the OKU concession card, they can make applications at specific locations and a RM5 fee will be charged for the issuance of the card, with the amount being credited to the card in a one-time transaction.
Applicants are required to bring along their OKU card issued by the Welfare Department for verification. Concession card applications can be completed online, with the cards being sent to the selected location within three days for those with complete documents.
Prasarana will also conduct a tour series with a few OKU associations on the product.
