Former senior civil servant Ramon Navaratnam said in a press interview that a third link need not be a road bridge. He said a rail link would be more feasible.

However, he pointed out that Singapore would need to be consulted, and negotiations could take a long time.

On Saturday, Johor menteri besar Osman Sapian said discussions would be held with the Finance Ministry, Home Ministry and the Works Ministry next month, with one suggestion being a third bridge.

Separately, former prime minister Najib Razak said Malaysia and Singapore had already decided last year to set up a mass transit rail link but the project had been cancelled by the new federal government.

He said the proposed Transit Rapid Singapore-Johor Baru rail link could ferry as many as 60,000 passengers at peak hours when completed in 2024. It would have been jointly owned by state-owned companies.

In a Facebook posting on Saturday, Najib said the trip would take only 30 minutes, and passengers could connect easily to Singapore’s Mass Rail Transit trains to their final destination. The link would also make it easier for Singaporeans and tourists to visit Johor and Malaysia.

A rail link as a solution to the traffic congestion was also raised by  Navaratnam, a former secretary-general of the Transport Ministry.

He said Malaysia and Singapore must jointly decide whether there was a need for another link, and what kind of link.

“It could be an undersea tunnel or railway link, which seems feasible as we already have the system. See what is feasible, effective and that could bring maximum benefit,” he said in an interview with the New Straits Times.

Asked by the NST whether it seemed that only Malaysia was keen on a third bridge, Navaratnam said: “Well, it appears so. But if you ask them (Singapore), they may say yes. If they do not agree to it, then you cannot proceed with the idea. Maybe there are reasons why they refused. Nonetheless, we should explore the possibilities.”