Malaysia and Singapore finally resume their train project linking two countries in a ceremony at the land border today.
The Rapid Transit System or RTS Link project was proposed nearly 10 years ago in 2011 and is now expected to complete in 2026. It was delayed three times and put on hold in April last year after the Pakatan Harapan government led by former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad was formed.
The countries’ leaders – Prime Ministers Muhyiddin Yassin and Lee Hsien Loong – marked the occasion today at the land border, decked out in batik shirts and face masks.
“When completed, the RTS will ease Causeway congestion, improve connectivity, foster people-to-people ties and generate shared economic and social benefits,” both parties said in a joint statement today.
Lee later told reporters: “It will make commuting easier. Workers can come to Singapore to work, Singaporeans going to Johor or going to other parts of Malaysia can take the RTS Link instead of using the Causeway.”
Muhyiddin later wrote online: “The resumption of the RTS project proves the strength of Malaysia’s and Singapore’s relationship, and our effort to continue to work together as two neighboring countries.”
The RTS Link project will now be a standalone Light Rail Transit system instead of leveraging the Thomson-East Coast Line MRT system in Singapore.
The RTS project is expected to have a capacity of 10,000 people per direction.
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