Metro and urban rail is the main mode of public transport in Kuala Lumpur.

There are several modes and companies operating here, and some transfers require you to buy a new ticket again.

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Metro tickets

Fares are calculated according to the distance travelled.

If you change between routes of the same company, you do not need to buy a new ticket when you change - you can select your destination on any line in the Rapid KL or KTM network in the machine.

If you are changing carriers and changing from, for example, a KTM line running from Batu Caves to the metro (or vice versa), you will always need to buy a new ticket.

Prices and how to pay the fare?

Prices are low and depending on the distance travelled you will generally pay from 2 myr to 3,50 myr.

The payment method varies slightly depending on the carrier.

Rapid KL - metro, monorail

At the station, you select your destination in the machine. You will receive a token, which you attach to the turnstile on entry and insert into the turnstile at the exit, where it stays.

You can pay for the token in the machine with cash or card.

Alternatively, you can pay with a Touch 'n Go card, which you just put on the turnstile when entering and exiting the station.

With this card, fares are usually 0,20 myr to 0,30 myr cheaper than buying a token. However, the card costs 10 myr to issue and is therefore not very worthwhile.

Details of where to buy Touch 'n Go are described in the Transport chapter.

Paying with your own contactless card in the metro is not yet possible.

KTM trains

On KTM trains 1, 2 and 10 (for example, when travelling to Batu Caves), there are three ways to buy tickets:

• by buying a token from a ticket machine or at the ticket office (as in the metro).
• by attaching a Touch 'n Go card to the turnstile
• by attaching your own Visa or MasterCard to the turnstile

Day ticket

You can also purchase a day pass MyCityPass. However, to do this you need a Touch 'n Go card to load the fare onto, which costs extra 10 myr.

• 1 day for 10 myr
• 2 days for 18 myr
• 3 days for 25 myr

This ticket is valid on all metro, monorail and train lines in Kuala Lumpur and also on all Rapid KL buses.

But to make the fare worthwhile you would have to ride more than 8 times in a day, if we calculate the average price of one ride around 2,50 myr.

You can only load the day's fare onto the Touch 'n Go card at the manned ticket counters at each metro or train station.

Kuala Lumpur metro lines

The city is currently served by 6 metro lines (MRT and LRT), 1 monorail line, 2 suburban elevated rail lines and 2 express train lines to Kuala Lumpur KUL Airport.

Line 10 train to Subang SZB small airport is out of service for a long time.

The metro and suburban trains are not a unified system but are operated by 2 different companies that do not recognize each other's tickets.

• Rapid KL operates all the metro lines, which are divided into the "MRT" (more conventional metro, which largely runs underground in the centre) and the "LRT" (light rail, which runs more above ground).
• KTM operates suburban trains
• KLIA Ekspres operates two train lines to KLIA

But the ordinary passenger will not know the difference.

There is also a fully elevated monorail that runs across the city centre.

• Dark blue line 1 - north-south line and an important line for tourists towards Batu Caves
  • Frequency - 60 to 90 minutes
  • Timetable - ktmb.com.my/TrainTime
  • Batu Caves
  • Kampug Batu - transfer station to the yellow line metro towards the modern centre
  • Bank Negara - about 10 minutes walk to Merdeka Square and Jamek Mosque
  • Kuala Lumpur - former main station, exit towards National Mosque, Bird Park
  • KL Sentral - main railway station
  • Bandar Tasik Selatan - main long-distance bus station (more in the How to get here chapter)
• Red Line 2 - line serving mainly the western and southwestern suburbs
  • Frequency - 60 minutes
  • Timetable - ktmb.com.my/TrainTime
• Orange Line 3 (Ampang Line) + Brown Line 4 (Sri Petaling Line) - connecting the northern outskirts of KL with the city centre. At Chan Sow Lin Station, the routes split, with Line 3 continuing east to Ampang Station, while Line 4 turns south and towards the bus station.
  • Frequency - 3 to 10 minutes
  • Latest departure times - myrapid.com.my/bus-train/rapid-kl
  • Titiwangsa (lines 3 + 4) - popular Titiwangsa Park with fountain
  • Sultan Ismail (lines 3 + 4) - approx. 10 minutes walk to Chow Kit
  • Masjid Jamek (lines 3 + 4) - Jamek Mosque, Merdeka Square
  • Plaza Rakyat (lines 3 + 4) - Merdeka 118 skyscraper
  • Hang Tuah (lines 3 + 4) - Berjaya Times Square Amusement Park and transfer to the monorail towards Bukit Bintang
  • Chan Sow Lin (lines 3 + 4) - transfer to the yellow line towards KLCC and Putrajaya
  • Bandar Tasik Selatan (line 4) - main long-distance bus station (see How to get here)
• Light Red Line 5 (Kelana Jaya Line) - the most used route connects the main railway station with the modern centre and also serves the large residential areas to the north (Gombak) and south (Putra Heights).
  • Frequency - 3 to 10 minutes
  • Latest departure times - myrapid.com.my/bus-train/rapid-kl
  • KLCC - Modern Centre, KLCC Park and Petronas Twin Towers
  • Kampung Baru - popular Kampung Baru district full of street-food stalls and restaurants
  • Masjid Jamek - Jamek Mosque, Merdeka Square
  • Pasar Seni - Central Market, Chinatown and the city's main bus station
  • KL Sentral - main railway station
• KLIA Ekspres (Line 6) - express train runs non-stop between KL Sentral and KLIA
  • Frequency - 20 minutes
  • Timetable - kliaekspres.com/schedule
• KLIA Transit (Line 7) - Express train runs from KL Sentral to KLIA with a stop in Putrajaya
  • Frequency - 30 minutes
  • Timetable - kliaekspres.com/schedule
• Monorail (Green Line 8) - runs mainly in the central area of Kuala Lumpur. Important stations:
  • KL Sentral - main railway station
  • Maharajalela - Merdeka 118 skyscraper
  • Imbi - Berjaya Times Square theme park
  • Bukit Bintang - the most famous tourist district of Bukit Bintang
  • Raja Chulan - Menara observation tower
  • Bukit Nanas - about 15 minutes walk to Kampung Baru and Petronas Twin Towers
  • Chow Kit - the district with the famous Chow Kit market
• Dark Green Line 9 (Kajang Line) - a route crossing the whole of Kuala Lumpur from east to west.
  • Frequency - 4 to 10 minutes
  • Last departure times - myrapid.com.my/bus-train
  • Museum Negara - National Museum
  • Pasar Seni - Central Market, Chinatown and the main city bus station
  • Merdeka - Merdeka 118 skyscraper
  • Bukit Bintang - the most famous tourist district of Bukit Bintang
• Brown Line 10 - the route serving Subang Airport is out of service for a long time
• Light blue line 11 - route serving only residential areas in the western suburbs
  • will be in operation from 2026
• Yellow Line 12 - route connecting Kuala Lumpur with Putrajaya.
  • Frequency - 5 to 10 minutes
  • Last departure times - myrapid.com.my/bus-train
  • Kampung Batu - transfer station for KTM train to Batu Caves
  • Titiwangsa - popular Titiwangsa park with fountain
  • Ampang Park - about 15 minutes walk to Petronas Twin Towers
  • Persiaran KLCC - KLCC Park and Petronas Twin Towers
  • Putrajaya Sentral - the administrative capital of Malaysia Putrajaya

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Kuala Lumpur metro and rail maps

For an official and pretty clear map of all rail lines in Kuala Lumpur, visit myrapid.com.my/rapid-kl-integrated-transit-map.

Timetables and intervals

All metro (MRT and LRT) and monorail lines in Kuala Lumpur depart the line at 6:00am from the terminus stations. Last trips are between 23:30 and 00:15 from the terminus stations.

Intervals on the metro lines vary between 5 and 10 minutes, shorter in the morning and afternoon, longer at midday and weekends (but no more than 10 minutes).

The longest intervals of between 60 and 90 minutes are on KTM routes 1 and 2.

Metro trains

All metro trains are modern and air-conditioned. Sometimes they are over-air-conditioned and the difference between the temperature outside and inside the train is not unusual, even over 15 degrees.

The trains and stations are spotlessly clean and travelling by metro in Kuala Lumpur is very safe.

Women-only carriages

As Malaysia is a predominantly Muslim country, all trains have 2 or 3 carriages in the middle reserved for women only.

These carriages are clearly marked.

Metro station facilities

The newest stations on the Yellow Line are usually equipped with free toilets, but this is not standard on other routes.

All stations have ticket vending machines and a ticket counter which also sells fares or Touch 'n Go cards.

At major stations you will find a number of small shops or even vending machines for drinks, but this is more the exception found at the largest transfer stations.

Metro lines are automatic, so there is a glass wall between the platform and the train with an automatic door.