PRIME Minister Anwar Ibrahim said subsidies for public transport such as bus, train and air services would continue under Budget 2024.

It included the RM96 million Stage Bus Support Fund to cover daily operating costs of stage bus operators who must continue to ply low-passenger routes in rural areas.

The government also provided RM150 million to continue the Stage Bus Transformation Programme, including to expand its services to benefit three new locations – Kota Bharu, Kuantan and Kota Setar.

“The government will continue to subsidise air transport with an allocation of RM209 million for the benefit of residents in rural and remote areas of Sabah and Sarawak.

“For more than 180,000 Klang Valley residents who use Prasarana bus and rail services for their daily commute, the benefits of the My50 monthly pass will be continued,” he said when tabling Budget 2024 in the Dewan Rakyat today.

He said the Pan Borneo Highway in Sarawak would be completed next year, while the tendering for 19 work packages for Phase 1b of the Pan Borneo Highway in Sabah, involving a stretch of 336km and costing RM15.7 billion, would be completed next month.

“Phase 2 of the Sarawak-Sabah Link Road (SSLR) project, covering over 320kmand costing nearly RM74 billion, will begin by the end of this year,” he said.

Anwar said the North-South Expressway expansion project from four lanes to six would be implemented from Sedenak to Simpang Renggam at a cost of RM931 million. – Bernama, October 13, 2023.