KUALA LUMPUR – The government has no intention of reviving the now-shelved Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) Federal Line in the near future on grounds of redundancy.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said this decision was in view of existing plans to further expand the rail network in the Klang Valley, which is projected for completion in the coming years.
Among others, he pointed out that the 57.7-km-long Mass Rapid Transit Putrajaya Line (MRT2) and 37.6-km Light Rail Transit Shah Alam Line (LRT3) are expected to be opened to the public in March 2023 and February 2024 respectively.
“The government is also constructing the East Coast Rail Link spanning 665km, which will connect states in the east coast and west coast of the peninsula, and is expected to be ready by the end of 2026,” he said in a parliamentary written reply.
Beyond this, Loke noted that the government has approved the MRT Circle Line (MRT3) which will connect to existing MRT, LRT, KTM, and Monorail lines through 10 new interchange stations.
He said the completion of this 51-km line would ensure the public transportation network system in the Klang Valley will be more comprehensive, continuous, and efficient.
Loke was responding to a question from Wong Chen (Subang-PH) who wanted to know if the government is prepared to revive the BRT Federal Line or introduce a new, equivalent public transportation plan similar to the one in Jakarta, Indonesia.
This is ostensibly in reference to TransJakarta, the BRT system in Indonesia’s capital. It spans 251km, the longest in the world, and operates about 4,300 buses with an average of about 1 million daily passengers.
In Malaysia, the BRT Federal Line was initially proposed in 2011 under the then Barisan Nasional administration, connecting Kuala Lumpur and Klang, and was earmarked as one of the potential BRT corridors in the Klang Valley.
The project was supposed to get underway in 2016 with an eye for completion within two years, and would see the 34-km line run along the congested Federal Highway in the middle of dedicated lanes.
However, in 2017, the government pulled the plug on the project, citing redundancies with the proposed LRT3. – The Vibes, March 3, 2023
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