Johor Hopes High-Speed Rail Project Will Continue
The Johor state government is hopeful that the high-speed rail (HSR) project would be continued even as Singapore would not be included in the new alignment.
The discontinuation of the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore HSR project provides the federal government an opportunity to review the return on investment to the government, said Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Hasni Mohammad.
He believes the project would benefit Malaysia, particularly Johor, given that most of the proposed HSR alignment are within Johor.
“Among the things we in Johor hope is that the HSR project would proceed even if it does not include Singapore (alignment) because I believe it can give direct returns to the economy of the country and the state of Johor,” he said as quoted by Bernama.
“So this is an opportunity to review the HSR plan, whether on its own, while Malaysia restructures the development of the rail industry.”
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He revealed that Iskandar Puteri’s Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) is also being reviewed to determine if it can be replaced by the light rail transit (LRT) to complement the rail communication system within Johor.
The Johor government has not ruled out the participation of Singapore in the investment aspect even as the new alignment would not include the city-state, he said.
With this, Hasni urged the federal government to involve Johor in any new discussion relevant to the HSR project.
“So we hope any new discussions involving the project will also take into account the views of Johor to ensure that the people of this state would benefit from its implementation,” he said.
Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Mustapa Mohamed on 1 January 2021 said a detailed study on a domestic HSR project will be conducted, which will also look into its feasibility and benefits to the people.
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