ECRL fares will follow KTMB fee structure, says Wee

ECRL fares will follow KTMB fee structure, says Wee

Transport minister Wee Ka Siong says there is no basis for anyone to claim that the East Coast Rail Link fares will be six times more than airfares.

Transport minister Wee Ka Siong said cargo and other businesses would contribute 70% to the East Coast Rail Link’s revenue when it is operational.
PETALING JAYA:
Transport minister Wee Ka Siong has allayed fears that the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) fares will be six times that of airfares, dismissing claims by Terengganu PKR chief Azan Ismail as “baseless”.

In a statement, he mitigated concerns by stating that the fares would first need to be approved by the government.

He said the ECRL passenger fare structure would be based on what is provided for in the Land Public Transport Act.

Watch the video here.

“It will be similar to KTMB’s fare structure, which is affordable to the public, from those living in the east coast all the way to the Klang Valley.”

The 665km rail network includes 59 tunnels and will traverse four states – Kelantan, Terengganu, Pahang, and Selangor.

Transport minister Wee Ka Siong.

The minister said the ECRL’s cargo component and other businesses were estimated to contribute more than 70% to its revenue once it becomes operational in 2027.

This was in response to Azan’s concern on whether the country and future generations would be able to foot the RM50.27 billion cost for the project.

Yesterday, former prime minister Najib Razak ridiculed Azan for claiming that the ECRL fares would be six times higher than airfares.

He said the PKR man was “nuts” and questioned what formula he had used to come to that conclusion.

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