Government does not allow reinstatement of HSR KL-Singapore project, but only without using any public funds – Loke
The government says that the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project can continue as long as there is investment from the private sector. According to Transport Minister Anthony Loke, the government is open to proposals to revive the project from technically and financially capable private parties, and will accept funding and implementation mechanisms. new opening for the project. Star report.
“We are open to any proposals as long as there are private investments. We are not going to stop it,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Invest Malaysia event in KL yesterday. However, he added that the government has yet to receive any complete proposals from any party, although negotiations are advancing the project.
“A lot of parties are talking about the project, but we have not received a complete proposal. There is no timeline for the project as the deal was canceled by the previous administration, so there is no urgency to hit any milestones,” he said.
Planning for KL-Singapore HSR started in December 2016 when both countries signed the agreement bilateral agreement to facilitate the project, which is said to have started construction in 2018 and completed in 2025, with Operation is scheduled to begin in 2026.
The project is planned as a 350 km double track (335 km of which is said to be in Malaysia and 15 km in Singapore) with a total of eight stops – Singapore, Iskandar Puteri, Batu Pahat, Muar, Ayer Keroh , Seremban, Putrajaya and Kuala Lumpur. A bridge across the Strait of Johor – with a static height of 25 meters – will link the boundary between the two countries.
The service is expected to run 10-car trains – with a capacity of up to 100 passengers per car – at an average speed of 300 km/h, reducing rail travel time between KL and Singapore down to 90 minutes, excluding customs clearance. at customs, immigration and quarantine.
In September 2018, at the request of Malaysia, both governments agreed postpone the project until May 31, 2020 to enable the identification of cost reduction options, including Review and optimize alignmentstation location and business model.
Procrastination leads to Malaysia pay 15 million Singapore dollars (about RM45.1 million at the time) to compensate for the abortion costs incurred by Singapore. The payment was made at the end of January 2019. In May 2020, The delay has been extended until December 31 of that year.
The HSR project has finally ended by both countries in January 2021, when it was announced that both sides could not come to an agreement on the proposed changes. It is known that the total amount that Malaysia finally paid to Singapore was 102.8 million Singapore dollars (330.3 million RM).
In November 2021, KL-SG HSR reappeared when former prime minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakon had an official visit to Singapore. During the visit, Mr proposal to revive discussions on HSR with his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong, who said he was open to any new proposals on the project.
