KUALA LUMPUR: Funding support for the Johor Elevated Autonomous Rapid Transit (E-ART) project will be provided by the Federal Government.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said this follows assessments revealing that the large-scale transport initiative is not fully viable if it relies solely on private financing.
He said the financing structure, level of government commitment and repayment mechanism are currently being finalised.
The details will be presented to the Cabinet for approval before the concession agreement is signed.
“In principle, the initial project financing was to be borne by the appointed consortium," he said in the Dewan Rakyat on Thursday (July 2).
"However, the current assessment shows that this large-scale infrastructure project is not viable if it relies solely on private sector financing.
“As such, the agreed terms will subsequently be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration and approval prior to the signing of the concession agreement,” he said.
Loke was responding to questions from Ayer Hitam MP Wee Ka Siong on whether funding for the project would be treated as a priority for Putrajaya.
During the question and answer session, Wee said Johor is a key entry point for tourism and should be prioritized given the urgency.
Drawing from past experience, Wee noted that the LRT project in Penang was initially expected to be funded at RM46bil by the state government but eventually received RM18.6bil in federal development expenditure.
“In the case of large-scale projects such as monorail, LRT, Putraline and Starline, many have ultimately failed and the government had to take over," Wee said.
“In the case of the E-ART project, since it is at the Letter of Intent stage under a Public-Private Partnership model, it will also likely move towards a concession arrangement.
“If the government is planning to come in and bear part of the cost, can this shorten the timeline and allow it to take on a more direct role as the main driver of the project?
“Should Johor not be treated as a priority if the government is already prepared to invest RM10bil?” he said.
The contract was awarded via a Letter of Intent in May to a consortium comprising DOM Industries (M) Sdn Bhd, MMC Engineering Sdn Bhd, BTS Group Holdings Public Company Limited (Bangkok) and Nylex (Malaysia) Bhd.
Loke said the E-ART project is expected to be completed within four years from the issuance of the Letter of Award.
He added that Johor is already a top priority, receiving approximately 70% of the ministry’s total Development Expenditure under the 12th Malaysia Plan.
He also affirmed the government’s commitment to completing the project as quickly as possible, with ongoing mitigation plans in place to support Johor’s traffic dispersal.
The plan includes the expansion of the Bus Stop Transit which will extend services to 28 routes using 254 buses, including electric buses.
“A high-frequency RTS shuttle bus service will also be introduced to connect JB Sentral/Bukit Chagar with surrounding areas,” Loke said.
Additionally, a Demand Responsive Transit system will be enhanced to provide more flexible first- and last-mile connectivity from key transport hubs.
To improve bus flow, 16 dedicated bus lanes will be introduced, including along the Skudai (5.6km) and Tebrau (10.3km) corridors.
