The service was introduced on 11 September 2015 following the completion of the Ipoh-Padang Besar Electrification and Double-Tracking Project in December 2014, which also saw the extension of ETS services to Padang Besar from Ipoh.

The initial service ran between Gurun in Kedah, Butterworth in Penang and Kamunting in Perak.

[2][3][4][5] On 1 January 2016, a service between Butterworth and Padang Besar in Perlis was introduced.

[8] A further revamp of routes on 1 September 2016 saw the Butterworth-Kamunting line being modified, with the northern terminus moving from Butterworth to Bukit Mertajam, and the southern terminus being extended by two additional stations from Kamunting to include Taiping and ending at Padang Rengas.

An extension of the Padang Rengas line to Kuala Kangsar, Sungai Siput and Ipoh began running on 16 September 2023.