The East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) has achieved another milestone with the arrival of the ‘Golden Train’ EMU and E-Loco. The electric multiple unit (EMU) is for passengers and 11 sets of the 425-seat trains are on order. The E-Loco is for goods – 12 units are on order and each is capable of hauling 3,500 metric tonnes of cargo. Transport minister Anthony Loke says that as of end-January, the ECRL’s completion rate is 91.7%, and with the arrival of the first train sets, the RM50.27 billion mega project is entering the next phase – operational preparedness. “With the arrival of the EMU and E-Loco, we’ll be starting an important phase which is testing and validation of the trains, in line with the overall project planning. We’re expecting that the planned schedule, which is the ECRL starting operations in January next year, can be achieved. I’m hoping that the overall project goes smoothly,” Loke told the media in Kuantan yesterday. Two sets of the EMU and two sets of the E-Loco arrived from China at the end of last year, and yesterday’s event in Kuantan was the official launch. The 665 km ECRL connecting the East Coast to the Klang Valley will have 11 EMU train sets, which will have six cars each. One EMU can ferry 425 passengers in a full economy class configuration. The 160 km/h train will have toilets, luggage racks, F&B counter, bilik solat with wuduk area and OKU-friendly features. There will be mobile phone reception throughout the alignment. Fares will be announced several months before the January 2027 launch, to be determined by a comprehensive land public transport agency (APAD) study, subject to approval by the government. “East Coast folks in the Klang Valley only have to wait one more Syawal to be able to return home to celebrate Hari Raya Aidilfitri 2027 with the ECRL,” Loke said. Check out the ECRL trains below – looks good, doesn’t it? Compare prices between different insurer providers to save the most on your car insurance renewal compared to other competing services. Many payment method supported and you can pay with instalment using Atome, Grab PayLater or Shopee SPayLater.