10MP: Malaysia plans MRT system

Malaysia is planning a new mass transit system, convention facilities and an international financial district in Kuala Lumpur in a bid to tackle traffic congestion and enhance its capital’s standing as a global city.

“Livability of Greater Kuala Lumpur is crucial in the competition for talent, wealth and investments in the global area,” the government said in a report on the country’s five- year development plan released today.

Kuala Lumpur ranked 79 out of 130 cities for livability in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2010 survey. About 70 per cent of Malaysia’s population will be concentrated in urban areas by 2020, raising challenges in tackling increasing density, crime and public transportation, according to today’s 10th Malaysia Plan report.

A mass rapid transit system covering a 20-kilometer radius around Kuala Lumpur’s city center will carry two million passenger-trips per day when completed, according to the report. It didn’t state the project’s cost or deadline.

An existing light transit rail network in the city will be expanded. More feeder buses and covered walkways are also planned to aid commuters, the government said.

The business district planned for Kuala Lumpur will target Islamic finance and related professional services, the government said, without providing details.

Urban Regeneration

Other plans in and around the capital include the redevelopment of the Sungai Besi airport, a township development in Sungai Buloh, convention-center facilities at Jalan Duta and an urban rejuvenation project in Kampung Baru.

The government also proposes to introduce en-bloc voting rules to facilitate redevelopment of collectively-owned property and land in a bid to hasten urban regeneration, the report said.

“We should be able to see sustained property demand backed by a good employment market, strong liquidity and still- conducive interest rate levels,” Leong Hoy Kum, group managing director of Mah Sing Group Bhd., said in a emailed statement.

Elsewhere in the country, construction companies such as Gamuda Bhd and MMC Corp stand to gain from the extension of an electrified double-track railway project to the southern state of Johor at the estimated cost of RM16.5 billion. The two companies are already jointly laying a 329-kilometer double- track railway in the northern part of the Malaysian peninsular.

Malaysia will spend about RM2.7 billion to build roads and rail systems leading to key ports and airports, the report said.

Airport Expansion

Another RM3.3 billion will be spent on the expansion of airport capacity as airline passenger arrivals are expected to grow to 62 million in 2015 from 47 million in 2008, the government said. A new low-cost carrier terminal is already being constructed at Kuala Lumpur International Airport.

Private investments totaling RM6 billion will be spent on upgrading works at Westport, Port of Tanjung Pelepas and Penang Port.

“We expect players with a strong resume and considerable experience to benefit from the larger infrastructure works,” Maybank Investment Bank Bhd said in a report yesterday ahead of the announcement. It cited WCT Bhd, Gamuda and IJM Corp as its top picks in the construction sector. -- Bloomberg