New rail stations in East Coast?

An official document appears to show a list of towns linked by a 620-km track.

PETALING JAYA: A national public transport document suggests that a new 620-km railway will link the Klang Valley to several towns on the East Coast.

At least that is what it looks like in a fuzzy image (see below) in the final draft of the National Public Transport Masterplan released last week. The document is also available on the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) website.

Called the East Coast Rail Route (ECRR), the line may start at one of three locations in Selangor—the Integrated Transport Terminal (ITT) Gombak, Batu Caves or Serendah.

It will then enter Pahang, stopping at Bentong, Mentakab or Temerloh, Maran and Gambang before going to the upcoming Kuantan Sentral station and then onwards to Kuantan Port City.

After this, it will go into Terengganu, stopping at Kemaman, Kertih, Paka, Dungun, Ajil, Kuala Terengganu, Penarik and Kampung Raja.

Finally, it will move into Kelantan, visiting Tok Bali, Jelawat and Kota Bahru before terminating at Tumpat, about 9km from the Thailand-Malaysia border.

The document does not say if the line will be serviced by high-speed carriages or if it will be managed by Keretapi Tanah Melayu (KTM), which is owned by the Finance Ministry.

Tumpat is also where KTM’s 526-km single-track East Coast Line ends.

Most Malaysians living on the East Coast have been depending on its roads to get around.

Good for the environment
The ECRR, according to the document, is expected to service around 3.3 million people and boost economic growth in the East Coast. The transport of goods by rail, it said, would be more environmentally friendly than by road-bound vehicles.

Secondary lines—called “spur” lines—leading to industrial spots are also anticipated.

“The enahnced transport efficiency enabled by this rail project is expected to improve the East Coast Economic Region’s (ECER) connectivity with the West Coast, thereby boosting investment and economic growth,” the masterplan said.

“By 2024, it is expected to carry some 37 million tonnes of freight annually.”

Engineering consultants HSS Integrated had recently conducted a RM29 billion feasibility study on this proposal rail link for the government.

On its website, HSS Integrated stated that the East Coast Economic Region Development Council (ECERDC) had established that a rail route connecting all the major ports, business centres and towns in the East Coast was vital to achieve growth to the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia.

HSS Integrated was then appointed to conduct the feasibility study of the proposed route and to determine a preliminary alignment that will best serve the East Coast.

A recent Bernama report cited Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak as announcing that the first stage of the rail would span 109km from Kertih to Kuantan.

It also hinted that industrial areas such as the Gambang Halal Park, Kemaman Supply Base and Kuantan Port would be linked through this railway.