JOHOR BARU: The newly-reopened Johor Zoo saw almost 20,000 visitors on National Day yesterday.
The zoo had been shut for three years.
State Housing and Local Government Committee chairman Datuk Mohd Jafni Md Shukor said the zoo recorded the highest number of visitors on a single day since it was opened to the public in 1962.
"It was a historical day for us, and it was extra special as we celebrated our 67th Independence Day anniversary," he told the New Straits Times, today.
Jafni said the zoo was opened to the public, half an hour prior to its official 9am-to-5pm operational hours yesterday, as some 3,500 visitors had been queuing at its entrance as early as 7.15am.
In conjunction with Merdeka, the state government provided six free shuttle busses from the defunct Air Molek Prison to the zoo. There are ample free parking lots at the prison.
Jafni said the busses provided by the Johor Public Transport Corporation recorded 243 trips and had ferried 14,310 passengers.
"We recorded 19,461 including 310 foreign visitors the zoo yesterday until 5pm when the ticket counters were closed for the day," he said.
Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Onn Hafiz offered a 50 per cent discount on ticket entrance prices, while children, the disabled and senior citizens were entitled to free entrance to the zoo in conjunction with the National Day.
As at 2pm today, the zoo recorded almost 9,000 visitors, including those who made their way from Perak and Negeri Sembilan.
Jafni said the visitor attendance gave the management the opportunity to identify certain areas for improvement for the comfort and safety of its visitors.
The Johor Zoo is open between 9am and 5pm daily.
It houses more than 275 animals, including tigers, elephants, camels, monkeys, tapir, birds and a large reptile exhibit.
The zoo, located on 4.73ha of land, was started in 1928 by the late Sultan Sir Ibrahim Sultan Abu Bakar.
Johor Zoo, once known as Kebun Binatang, is the country's oldest zoo.