The Gemas-Johor Bahru Railway Electrified Double-Tracking Project: Steady Progress towards Completion

Abstract

Malaysia is well-known for its large-scale infrastructure projects. However, while highways, bridges, and interchanges have been a staple for decades, thinking among policymakers has evolved in recent years. Following trends across the globe, physical and urban planning has gravitated away from car-based transport towards rail links between and around major urban centres. In addition to being more environmentally-friendly, rail connections can allow faster commutes for residents between large urban agglomerations as well as ambitious transit-oriented developments in new stations along the way. The Klang Valley did not have a rapid transit system until the mid-1990s, when the Ampang Light Rail Transit (LRT) and KTM Komuter service began operation. Since about 2000, the Malaysian government has invested heavily to improve rail transport in the Klang Valley, leading to the launching of the Kajang MRT in 2016. There are now a number of inter-city rail links in the works. Notable examples include: the East Coast Railway Line (ECRL), running from Port Klang in the west across the Peninsula to Kuantan in the east and then up to the border with Thailand; and the Kuala Lumpur-Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) between the two capitals and seven urban centres in between. However, in past months, the size, complexity, and cost of these initiatives have given the various administrations in power at the federal level reason to pause. In contrast to these large-ticket items, which are expected to cost RM 42 billion and RM 60 billion respectively, progress on the lower profile Gemas-Johor Electrified Double-Tracking Project (EDTP) has been consistent despite changes in the country’s leadership.