Great Malaysian Railway Journeys
RAWANG

platform scene at Rawang railway station

I wrote these Great Malaysian Railway Journey pages during the period 2014-2017. They used to be hosted on a separate Weebly website but since mid 2026 Weebly is no longer available for customers in Malaysia so I am transferring the content here.

THE STATION

view of Rawang stationRawang Railway Station

Rawang Railway Station is the northern terminus of the KTM Komuter service originating in Sungai Gadut (south of Seremban) and passing though central Kuala Lumpur before arriving at Rawang.

It is also a station on the ETS line from KL to Ipoh and on the main North South Intercity route.

As such it is a fairly busy station as can be seen from the large number of motorcycles parked outside by city commuters.

WITHIN WALKING DISTANCE OF THE STATION

In my opinion, Rawang is a rather characterless town. Or perhaps I am being unfair. Maybe its charms are well hidden! When the 1914 Pamphlet of Information for Travellers was written there was no station at Rawang. It was once a tin mining area and in 1871 a battle took place here when Chung Piang, the right hand man of Kapitan Yap Ah Loy, fought and won to protect the Kapitan's tin mines from rival interests. Rawang has now grown into a sprawling dormitory town for Greater KL with a population of over 120,000. There is a giant cement factory on the outskirts of Rawang adding to the rather gloomy image of the place.

The railway station is close to the undistinguished, traffic-clogged town centre. I could not find a great deal of interest within walking distance of the station. These are the highlights:

Sikh Temple at RawangSikh Temple at Rawang

SIKH TEMPLE
The Gurdwara Sahib Rawang is located right next to the railway station. The address is Rawang Tin Fields indicating what the economic activity in this area was.

The original temple was set up in 1938 but the current building dates from the Seventies.

Chinese Temple

TOKONG SZE YEAH KONG
This Chinese temple is located in Lorong Tokong Cina, off Jalan Maxwell. The concrete entrance gate bears the date 1964 but the origins of the temple go back to a hundred years earlier.

The centre altar holds statues of the deities Xian Shi Ye and Si Shi Ye. Chung Piang, mentioned above, is also honoured here.

Cultural stage at Rawang's Chinese temple

STAGE FOR CULTURAL PERFORMANCES
In front of Sze Yeah Kong temple is a traditional raised stage where theatrical performances, Chinese opera and other cultural events are put on during Chinese New Year and similar festivals.

Traffic clogged street in Rawang

Rawang's old shophouses have mostly been altered, updated or covered in advertising hoardings.

Jalan Welman is one of Rawang's oldest streets and is known as Little India for its curry shops and saree stores, though many of these have been replaced by mobile phone retailers and betting shops.

Parking and traffic jams are a headache in town so at least travelling by train and walking enables visitors to see a little more than is possible in a car.

Modern shopping development in front of Rawang station.

MODERN DEVELOPMENTS
There are lots of modern developments in and around Rawang such as this shopping street opposite the railway station.

There is no shortage of eating establishments here.

NEARBY

The main attractions near Rawang are Kanching Rainforest Waterfall and Templer Park. You can read about these by clicking on the respective links.


There are plenty of taxis available at Rawang Railway Station if you want to visit these nearby places.

Previous Stop: Serendah

Next Stop: Sungai Buloh

Share this page:

AUTHOR BIO

the author

David (the one on the left) is the writer behind Malaysia Traveller, sharing first-hand travel advice from over five decades of living and travelling across Asia and the Middle East. Based in Malaysia since 2009 and now in Kuching, he has published over 790 pages on this website, personally visited every place he covers, and uses only his own photos. Readers can learn more on his About Me page. He also shares updates on Facebook and YouTube. He loves uncovering overlooked places that even some Malaysians have never visited.