ABOUT 40% of the RM2 billion construction of the Johor Baru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link project will be allocated to Bumiputera contractors, said Malaysia Rapid Transit System Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp).

Its chief executive officer, Mohd Zarif Hashim said the jobs would be awarded to Bumiputera contractors grades 1 to 6, of which details of work packages would be announced by the Johor government next week.

Zarif said the cost of the RTS project for the Malaysian portion amounted to RM3.7 billion, with RM2 billion for construction.

“So, 40% of the construction jobs (for Bumiputera) is worth RM800 million,” he told a press conference after the virtual ground-breaking ceremony for the proposed Bukit Chagar Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) Complex today.

The virtual ceremony was graced by Johor Sultan, Sultan Ibrahim Almarhum Sultan Iskandar and Johor Crown Prince Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim.

Also present were Transport Minister Dr Wee Ka Siong, Johor Menteri Besar Hasni Mohammad and State Secretary Azmi Rohani.

The construction works include a station in Bukit Chagar, a depot in Wadi Hana, viaducts through the Johor Baru city centre and over the Straits of Johor to the Malaysian-Singapore border, and the Bukit Chagar CIQ complex.

This facility will be part of a transit-oriented development where there will also be a multimodal transport hub and a mixed property development.

“The multimodal transportation hub will have many many floors. I can’t remember how many (but) it will be a skyscraper. So, out of the many floors, RTS will take up four floors for the purpose of CIQ.

“We are going to award these (packages) stage by stage and for now, we are only awarding the advanced works for the CIQ building, as well as reference and design for CIQ building.

“We are going to award the remaining packages much later. For the CIQ project, for subcontractors… small contractors… that will start coming in starting end of this year,” he added.

Out of the RM2 billion, he said only RM86 million had been awarded for advanced works for the CIQ area.

In his speech earlier, Zarif said the RTS development would be the catalyst for Johor Baru’s development, which will result in spillover effects, including job creation.

He said Sultan Ibrahim has also mooted the idea of organising a competition for the best facade design for the RTS station, featuring Johor uniqueness and bringing back the nostalgia of train journey and its history in the state.

On July 30, Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin and his Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong met at the midpoint of the Johor Causeway as symbolic gesture to resume the RTS Link project, after three postponements.

The idea of the project, conceived in 2010 and announced in 2011, would involve a 4km shuttle system connecting Bukit Chagar in the state capital Johor Baru and Woodlands in Singapore.

The RTS serves as a convenient and cost-effective shuttle system integrated with both public transport systems on both sides of the border, as well as reducing congestion on the Johor Causeway. – Bernama, November 22, 2020.