Kuala Lumpur Sentral station


Kuala Lumpur Sentral Station is a transit-oriented development that houses the main railway station of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia. Opened on 16 April 2001, KL Sentral replaced the old Kuala Lumpur railway station as the city's main inter-city railway station. KL Sentral is the largest railway station in Malaysia, and also in Southeast Asia from 2001 to 2021, before Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal in Bangkok, Thailand was completed.
KL Sentral is designed as an intermodal transport hub. All of Kuala Lumpur's urban rail lines serve KL Sentral except the,, and. Passengers can catch intercity trains serving many locations across Peninsular Malaysia to places such as Johor Bahru, Ipoh, and Butterworth, as well as special monthly excursion trains towards Thailand. It was also designed to be a new business and financial hub for Kuala Lumpur.
WWW stesensentral.com

Overview

KL Sentral refers to the entire of development built on the former Keretapi Tanah Melayu marshalling yard in Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur. The development includes the transport hub, hotels, office towers, condominiums, and shopping malls, and was expected to be completed in 2015. Designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa, this station initially used Malay, English and Japanese languages signs as a tribute, although the Japanese on the signs were removed in 2025.
KL Sentral has been divided into 14 land parcels, each representing a different function. Some of these lots have been fully constructed and are already in use, while others are either in the process of being built or are still awaiting development, according to the phased programme.
KL Sentral is being developed by a consortium made up of the Malaysian Resources Corporation Berhad, Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad, and Pembinaan Redzai Sdn Bhd.

History

Kuala Lumpur Sentral station stands on the site of the former KTM marshalling yard called the Central Railroad Repair Shops. In the Second World War during the Japanese occupation of Malaya, the yard was the target of the Allies' 1945 bombing of Kuala Lumpur. The yard was targeted twice, on 19 February 1945 and 10 March 1945. The second bombing raid also damaged the nearby National Museum.
In 1994, with the objective of enhancing Kuala Lumpur city's public transport, the Government of Malaysia awarded a contract to a consortium to transform at the old railway marshalling yard into a modern transit hub within a self-contained urban development. The consortium, led by Malaysian Resources Corp Bhd, appointed architect Kisho Kurokawa and Associates, who also designed the Kuala Lumpur International Airport, to design the master plan for the entire development.
In July 2010, two trains crashed into each other. One was an airport-bound train, and the other was a parked train. The crash injured three people.
In early August 2019, KL Sentral was one of the locations affected by two online bomb threats posted on Twitter; the other being the Russian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. These threats were posted via a hacked account by an individual calling himself "limzhengyan"; as a result, the Malaysian police carried out a search on those locations and determined that the threats were hoaxes, although coincidentally on the same day an incomplete improvised explosive device was found at the Bukit Damansara area.
Starting from 29 May 2023, KL Sentral LRT station officially rebranded as KL Sentral-redONE. The partnership is part of a five-year station naming rights agreement between Prasarana Integrated Development and redONE, the largest mobile virtual network operator in ASEAN.

Development zones

The KL Sentral development area is divided into several plots of land, each with a specific development purpose. All constructions were scheduled to be completed by 2015.
LotDevelopment TypeNameNotes
AOfficeCIMB Headquarters Completed in mid-2012
BOfficeQ SentralAnnounced in July 2010. Originally to be developed by MRCB, Kuwait Finance House and Quill Group, but later MRCB bought all of KFH and Quill shares in the venture. Construction began in Q4 2010 and was completed in 2014.
CHotel/ResidentialSt. Regis Hotel and ResidenceConstruction started in Q4 2010 and was completed in 2014.
DResidentialSentral ResidenceMRCB together with Capitaland and the Quill Group of companies will develop a 52-story residential tower. Construction was completed in 2015.
EOffice & CommercialPlatinum SentralConstructed and fully developed by MRCB. Construction completed in 2011.
FCommercialUnannouncedAnnounced in 2013, constructions were expected to commence in 2014, but there were no developments at the site. Currently designated as an open-air car park with a sales gallery building.
GHotel/Commercial/OfficeNU SentralA joint venture company between Aseana Investment Limited and MRCB has been set up to develop a hotel and an office tower. MRCB and a Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera Bhd subsidiary formed a joint venture develop a retail mall and office tower. Constructions for all buildings began in H2 2008 and are expected to be done by 2012. Also offers integration with KL Monorail. Consists of two office towers, one 27-story and one 37-story, that will be built on top of the mall. A 28-story hotel will also be built on top of the mall.
HTransportationStesen SentralCompleted in 2000, served by KTM Komuter, KTM ETS, KLIA Transit, KLIA Ekspres and the LRT Kelana Jaya Line. Also acts as a Rapid KL bus hub. The KL Monorail and MRT Kajang Line are within walking distance.
IHotelHilton Kuala Lumpur & Le Méridien hotelsCompleted in 2004
JCommercial & OfficeSooka Sentral, UEM Headquarters, MIDA office, Company Commission of Malaysia Headquarters, Quill 7 and offices of AxiataSooka Sentral opened in 2008. Office towers completed in 2009. CVSKL opened its doors in November 2017.
KResidentialSuasana SentralCompleted in 2002
LResidentialSuasana Sentral LoftCompleted in 2008
MOfficePlaza SentralPhase 1 completed in 2001. Phase 2 was completed in 2007.
NOffice1 Sentral TowerCompleted in 2007. Sold to Tabung Haji

Office zones

Office zones in KL Sentral account for more than 50% of the total land area. The developer intends that KL Sentral will ultimately be the business and financial hub of Kuala Lumpur.

Lot A: CIMB Headquarters (Menara CIMB)

Lot A will be the new headquarters for CIMB Group which is located facing the National Museum. As of June 2011, the new headquarters' name, which appears on the construction site, is Menara CIMB. The company acquired the land in July 2008, and construction started in Q4 2007 and was completed in 2011. It has around of office space available.

Lot M: Plaza Sentral

Lot M or Plaza Sentral is a completed office complex in the west of KL Sentral. The complex was completed in two stages.
  • Phase I was completed in June 2001, comprising three blocks and a total gross floor area of. Offering prestigious office suites, Plaza Sentral was sold and quickly taken up by multinationals and Malaysian companies alike, eager to take advantage of the global connectivity and convenience of working in KL Sentral. Its take-up rate is reaching 100%.
  • Phase II was launched in September 2003 due to the escalating demand for premium office space. It has since been fully taken up. Comprising two towers – 18-storey and 26-storey – made up of four blocks and a total gross floor area of, the building was completed in 2006. Tenants include British Telecom and Maxis Communications.
  • Sentral Tower, a purpose-built 30-storey office tower, was sold to Lembaga Tabung Haji for RM161.46mil in March 2004.
  • Plaza Sentral has a basement parking lot.

Lot J: Sooka Sentral & 4 Office Towers

Lot J is a development lot for four 35-storey office towers of identical architecture.
Lot J was sold to United Engineers Bhd in May 2005 with plans for four towers. Tower A was built by UEM for its corporate headquarters called Mercu UEM on the prime piece of land with a gross floor area of. Tower B will be an office tower for the Malaysian Industrial Development Authority. Tower C was built by Quill Realty Sdn Bhd and sold to Suruhanjaya Syarikat Malaysia for its corporate headquarters. Tower D is an office building built by Quill, named Quill 7.
A development on Lot J is the six-storey lifestyle centre which houses a fitness and spa centre, business centre, food court, restaurants, and alfresco dining facilities. This development, called Sooka Sentral, opened its doors in December 2007.

Lot N: 1 Sentral Tower

1 Sentral Tower is an office tower, offering a gross floor area of. Construction was completed in 2007. It houses companies such as PricewaterhouseCoopers, MRCB, and General Electric.

Others

Lot B has been proposed as a financial area for KL Sentral. No construction has taken place.
Lot F is planned for a future office block. Currently, the base is used for a furniture exhibition mall and a Food and Beverage centre.

Entertainment zones

Lot E will be a hub for entertainment and convention centre. The deck of this development has been completed.

Lot G: NU Sentral

Lot G, located in the south of KL Sentral consist of shopping complex, office block, serviced apartments, and a three-star hotel. NU Sentral is the shopping mall in the area, and directly acts as a pathway between Stesen Sentral and the KL Sentral monorail station. Development works commenced in 2008 and were completed in 2014. The land was previously used as a parking lot and a short-cut for pedestrians from Brickfields and the KL Sentral Monorail station to KL Sentral proper.
In January 2008, MRCB set up a joint venture company with Pelaburan Hartanah Bumiputera Bhd named Jewel Surprises Sdn Bhd to develop the area. The new company will hold a lease on the plot of land for 99 years.

Transport hub

Lot H: Stesen Sentral

Stesen Sentral is the name of Lot H, which is the designated transport hub within the KL Sentral development project, although both the public and connected transit lines generally refer to the station itself as "KL Sentral".
Stesen Sentral, designed to house six rail networks, was completed in December 2000, and the rail, retail, and food and beverage operations began in April 2001. Standing on, the main building has a gross floor area of, and the specifications were based on passenger projections up to the year 2020, which was when Malaysia aspired to be a fully developed nation.
In 2008, Stesen Sentral registered over 100,000 passengers daily, which translates into 36.5 million people a year.
The station has a parking lot for visitors and people working around the KL Sentral area.

Rail services

KL Sentral is served by the following services:
KL City Air Terminal is located at the eastern and western ends of the station building and was opened on 14 April 2002 together with the KLIA Ekspres. Designed as an "Airport Terminal in the City", KL CAT is an IATA-indexed station and is assigned the IATA code XKL.
As of October 2023, passengers flying Malaysia Airlines and Batik Air can check in their baggage at KL CAT before boarding a KLIA Ekspres train to Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
KL CAT is divided into two halls:
  • KL CAT Departure Hall is located at the western end of the station building and houses the check-in counters, ticketing counters, and faregates to access KLIA Ekspres departure platform.
  • KL CAT Arrival Hall is located at the eastern end of the station building and houses the exit faregates from KLIA Ekspres arrival platform. The linkway that connects to Muzium Negara for the MRT Kajang Line is also located at this hall.
When KL CAT was built, there were plans to offer through checked baggage service from KLIA to KL CAT where checked baggage of passengers arriving at KLIA would be conveyed to KL CAT and collected by passengers at KL CAT. However, these plans have not materialised.

Connecting rail services

The following lines have stations located within the vicinity of the KL Sentral complex:
  • : KL Sentral Monorail station at Jalan Tun Sambanthan can be accessed via NU Sentral shopping mall located adjacent to the KL Sentral complex.
  • : station at Jalan Damansara can be accessed via a underground walkway from the KL Sentral complex.

Connecting stations

KL Sentral Monorail station

The KL Sentral monorail station stands on Jalan Tun Sambanthan in Brickfields, in front of the NU Sentral shopping mall. The station is the as a terminus for the line. It is directly connected to NU Sentral, which allows for uninterrupted walking between Stesen Sentral and the monorail station.
The monorail station is also equipped with new ticket vending machines, ticketing gates as well as a new Customer Service Office. Tactile paving for the visually impaired is also provided beginning from NU Sentral. The completion of the overhead bridge now enables customers to travel between KL Sentral and the monorail station safely and conveniently.
The station uses the Spanish solution platforms, having one track with a platform on each side, for passengers embarking and disembarking the train separately.
Before NU Sentral was built, passengers who wanted to move from the monorail station to Stesen Sentral and vice versa had to walk through the busy Jalan Tun Sambanthan.
The monorail and LRT stations are not the interchange station or out-of-station interchange stations despite being part of the same Rapid KL system. Passengers will be charged two single-way journey fares instead of integrated fares whenever using these connecting stations.

Muzium Negara MRT station

Due to space constraints, an MRT station could not be built in the Stesen Sentral area, an MRT station had to be built in front of the nearby National Museum to allow connections to Stesen Sentral. The station opened on 17 July 2017, along with the underground footbridge that connects the MRT station to the main KL Sentral building.

KL Sentral bus hub

KL Sentral has also been made a city bus hub by Rapid KL as part of its bus network revamp. It is the bus hub for city shuttle and trunk bus routes.
Buses to Singapore and the Kuala Lumpur International Airport also operate from KL Sentral, while most other bus operators go near KL Sentral along Jalan Tun Sambanthan. Also, a hop-on/hop-off tourist bus stop is located between the Hilton and the station. Traveling by bus to Genting Highlands is also available here.

Bus services

From KL Sentral

Hotels and residential zones

Lot C: St. Regis Hotel

Lot C houses the St. Regis Hotel Kuala Lumpur. The luxurious hotel consists of 208 rooms and suites started its operation in May 2016.

Lot D: The Sentral Residences

Lot D consists of two 55-storey residential towers called The Sentral Residences that overlook the Lake Gardens and the city. Jointly developed by MRCB, CapitaLand and Quill Group, construction was completed in 2015.

Lot I : Hilton KL & Le Méridien Hotels

Lot I consists of two skyscraper hotels occupied by Hilton Kuala Lumpur and Le Méridien Kuala Lumpur, owned by Daito Asia Development Sdn. Bhd. and Daisho Asia Development Sdn. Bhd. respectively. The hotels opened for business in September and October 2004 respectively.

Lot K and L: Suasana Sentral and Suasana Sentral Loft

Lot K is the location of a serviced apartment, Suasana Sentral. Suasana Sentral consists of two blocks, or 400 units of apartments. It was completed in 2002 and is fully sold and occupied, with about 40% of the buyers coming from the international community.
The second phase of condominiums on Lot L, Suasana Sentral Loft was launched in early 2005 and began occupancy in early 2008. The 37 and 38-storey apartment towers have a total of 600 units. All have been sold.