Lee was responding to transport minister Loke Siew Fook’s statement that Putrajaya was not ruling out giving “assistance” for the RM100 billion project, given the government’s current commitment to the East Coast Rail Link, a RM75 billion mega rail project slated to be completed by early 2027.
“Instead of prioritising subsidies for mega projects like the HSR, I urge the government to tackle low-hanging fruit and immediately add more buses to roads.
“Focusing on first-and-last-mile connectivity will surely connect more people to the urban rail network, optimising the efficiency of the overall public transport system,” Lee said in a statement.
He also claimed that bus services in the Klang Valley alone need 4,000 more buses to be reliable and efficient.
“Shockingly, only about half of the 1,800 buses were operating last year due to maintenance and a lack of bus captains.
“A shortage of buses causes fewer passengers to be fed to the rail system. Indeed, it is the main contributing factor to the low ridership of MRT1 and MRT2, according to the auditor-general’s report.
“On top of this, big cities like Johor Bahru, Melaka, Seremban and Kota Kinabalu do not have comprehensive public urban bus services. The old buses have been retired, only to be replaced with more cars, not newer buses,” he said.
Lee said the addition of 8,000 buses – 4,000 in the Klang Valley and the rest outside the metropolitan centre – would cost only RM5 billion, including RM1 billion to improve bus stops, walkways and bicycle lanes.
“This is 5% of the HSR’s total bill. This expansion can be achieved by fostering partnerships with private companies to lower public financing cost, ensuring satisfactory bus frequency, wider coverage and higher comfort levels,” he said.
On Wednesday, Loke said Malaysia aimed to decide by the end of the fourth quarter whether to proceed with the multibillion-dollar HSR line between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, as Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s government weighs proposals from a narrowing list of private consortiums.
“Once we have a policy decision to proceed with the high-speed rail, we will start negotiations with Singapore,” he said.
Loke said Anwar’s government had already shortlisted three out of seven consortiums that submitted proposals after issuing a so-called request for information late last year.