Consultants Rosli Azad Khan and Goh Bok Yen told FMT they believed that people had become too used to commuting in their own vehicles.

However, both congratulated the government for the initiative, which the prime minister announced yesterday.

Rosli said it showed Putrajaya was listening and reacting to problems faced by the public.

“But the issue here is not just about ridership. It’s about popularising public transport and making Malaysians aware that there is a better alternative to privately owned vehicles,” he said.

To increase ridership, he said, the government should be prepared to take unpopular measures to discourage car use and encourage the use of public transport.

“This may include, in the long term, doing away with fuel subsidies, increasing parking rates, which can then be channelled towards facilitating public transport, and implementing congestion fees to cars accessing city centres.”

Rosli also suggested that the authorities approve the use of both motorcycle e-hailing services and personal micro-mobility vehicles.

“In the short term, leaders in government must be prepared to lead by example and use public transportation themselves,” he said.

Goh described the move as a good awareness campaign.

He said one month should be enough to allow passengers to familiarise themselves with the full extent of RapidKL’s services and facilities.

“With four weekends and 25 working days, they will have sufficient time to explore the system for themselves and freely go around to every point that it allows them access to,” he said.

However, to increase ridership beyond the duration of the fare waiver, he suggested that the government offer incentives for the adoption of public transport and enforce disincentives for private car use.

“If you want people to switch, it’s actually a long-term effort,” he said, adding that the culture of vehicle ownership was resistant to public transport adoption.

In the short term, Goh said, the government should look into filling the current gaps in public transportation, such as first and last mile connectivity.

“In the longer term, when the system is more complete, it can start imposing private vehicle restriction strategies and make motoring more expensive.

“For example, in Singapore’s central business district, if you have more than three occupants in a car, parking will be free, but you have to pay if you’re just one person,” he said.