Govt ready to expedite, partially fund Johor’s ART

KUALA LUMPUR: The federal government is ready to expedite the elevated autonomous rapid transit (ART) project in Johor Bahru as well as bankroll a portion of it, says transport minister Loke Siew Fook.

Loke said the government wants the project expedited, even though it would take years to take shape. In the interim, several traffic mitigation measures have been implemented in the state’s capital city, including strengthening the existing public transport system.

“But we are committed to the project and agree that it needs to commence as soon as possible. This project was proposed in May 2024, and we’ve already issued the letter of intent this month, two years after the proposal was first made.

“No project of this size (took two years). Even Penang waited 30 years to have its own LRT project after it was proposed back in 1995,” Loke told the Dewan Rakyat.

He also said some firms that participated in the request for proposal stage were “less competitive”, meaning that Putrajaya would need to partially fund the project.

“The transport ministry can say that at least some parts (of the project) can be bankrolled with the ministry’s development expenditure.”

Loke was responding to Wee Ka Siong (BN-Ayer Hitam), who asked whether Putrajaya could expedite the project and allocate the transport ministry’s development expenditure for this project, as it did for Penang’s Mutiara LRT.

Loke also dismissed any suggestion that Penang and Johor were treated differently in terms of federal funding for major infrastructure projects.

Wee, a former transport minister, said Penang had received RM16.8 billion in federal funding for its LRT project and argued that Johor, as the country’s southern gateway, should likewise be allocated RM10 billion for its elevated ART project.

However, Loke said 70% of the transport ministry’s development expenditure had been spent on projects in Johor.

He said RM10 billion had been allocated for the Gemas-Johor Bahru Electrified Double-Tracking Project, while another RM6.1 billion was earmarked for the Rapid Transit System Link connecting Johor and Singapore.

“Do not assume that allocations are being set aside for Penang but not Johor,” he said.