Travellers to and from Malaysia’s East Coast is set to experience a new level of comfort with bus travel as Alibaba and Scania signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to introduce a fleet of affordable luxury buses.
Luxurious travelling is made affordable by Alibaba’s coaches with the first of its kind high-decker luxury bus line that serves the West to East Coast to start.
En Md Fauzi Bin Abd Halim, Executive Head of Operations said a total of 14 luxury liners will begin operating the East Coast – Klang Valley route from February 2022 onwards.
“We are excited to operate and serve this route. Through this MoU, we are committed to our international partner from Sweden, Scania on increasing more of such buses in Malaysia and share with fellow Malaysians the comfort and excitement of travelling on our buses,” he added.
The MoU signing ceremony was graced by YB Dato’ Henry Sun Agong, Deputy Minister of Transportation at the Terminal Bersepadu Selatan, Kuala Lumpur.
Alibaba has engaged and signed on two famous coachbuilders in Malaysia namely SHL Coach and Tact Coach.
Both companies have many years of history and specialise in building high quality coaches. These two companies will supply all the 30 units of Alibaba buses.
The Ark series, A-20HD model is designed and manufactured exclusively by SHL Coach, whereas for TX-7 Series is designed and manufactured by Tact Coach. All units are built on the state-of-the-art Scania Chassis model, the first of its kind in Malaysia.
Alibaba Coaches built by SHL Coach and Tact Coach is the first of its kind in Malaysia with customisable dual functions air-conditioned on both decks of the bus. The lower deck can be customed to fit a pantry, toilet and resting lounge, or a cargo storage area.
This will allow bus operators to maximise their routes to either provide non-stop luxury bus travel to passengers or serve as a same-day delivery transportation service.
The current configuration for Alibaba’s fleet is a 24-seater luxury bus equipped with personal entertainment features such as massages chairs, and an infotainment system for games, movies and internet browsing.
Moreover, SHL Coach collaborated with Scania engineers over countless hours of research and development (R&D) to increase structural rigidity and safety. This resulted in a more durable and reliable body that comes with a longer lifespan.
Its body rigidity is recognised by the Road Transport Department Malaysia (JPJ) and complies with the UN-ECE R66 test requirements.
SHL Coach has also invested over RM500,000 in R&D to develop their own signature identity lighting for The Ark A20HD.
“The Signature The Ark Day Time Running Light will create signal water flow effect.
“The Signature The Ark Tail Lamp is designed for safety purposes in order to create a better visual and projection for the rear vehicle’s sight benefit,” explained Mr Bernard Ng Chong Yan, Sin Hock Leong Coach Works (SHL) Sdn Bhd.
The public can also rest assured of their air quality while travelling in The Ark A20HD.
“These buses will also be fitted with an AI-powered nanotechnology air cleaner that is able to sterilise and deodorise the cabin air. The air cleaner will be able to inactivate viruses and bacteria, hence, reducing the spread of any airborne diseases,” assured Mr Bernard Ng Chong Yan, Sin Hock Leong Coach Works (SHL) Sdn Bhd.
