People

Malaysia, July 2026 — The opening of the LRT3 Shah Alam Line has marked not only a new milestone for Malaysia’s urban transport network but also a personal achievement for maintenance engineer Emir Irfan Mohd Zufri. Nearly three decades after his father helped prepare Malaysia’s first driverless urban rail system, Emir played a role in bringing the latest light rail project into operation.

Emir, 32, shared a comparison of two photographs taken almost 30 years apart, showing his late father during testing and commissioning training for the former Putra LRT, now the Kelana Jaya Line, in Vancouver in 1997, and Emir during LRT3’s own testing and commissioning phase. His father had spent 25 years in the rail industry and was involved in the early stages of the LRT3 project before retiring in 2021.

After initially studying automotive engineering, Emir joined the rail sector as a maintenance engineer in 2020, first working on the MRT Putrajaya Line before moving to the LRT3 project in 2023. His involvement reflects the importance of specialised technical talent in supporting railway testing, commissioning, asset maintenance, and long-term operational reliability.

The story also highlights the role of knowledge transfer within the railway industry, where experience gained from earlier generations of infrastructure projects contributes to the delivery of future networks. Malaysia’s urban rail expansion has relied on engineers, technicians, and operators developing expertise across multiple generations of systems, from the Kelana Jaya Line to newer MRT and LRT developments.

As Malaysia continues investing in public transport infrastructure, the LRT3 project represents more than a new rail connection for the Klang Valley. It demonstrates how engineering capabilities, institutional knowledge, and workforce development remain essential elements in building reliable and sustainable railway networks.

Source: The Star