The Public-Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) will soon invite proposals for a transit system to help disperse traffic from the Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System Link (RTS Link) that’s set to start operating by end-2026, transport minister Anthony Loke has said, according to a Malay Mail report.
He said the ministry submitted a presentation for an autonomous rapid transit (ART) system to the Cabinet in December, which decided that the project should be in the form of a public-private partnership.
“The request for proposals (RFP) for the elevated ART will be called soon and the project also aligns with the Johor government’s proposal.
“An elevated ART is more flexible as the lanes could be utilised by both rail and bus,” he told reporters today after witnessing MRT Corp and Sunway Group sign a master agreement to jointly develop an integrated mixed-use development adjacent to the Bukit Chagar RTS Link station.
Johor menteri besar Datuk Onn Hafiz Ghazi proposed an elevated ART in April 2024, saying that it had received the consent of His Majesty Sultan Ibrahim, the King of Malaysia, and Johor Regent Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim. “(The) final decision will be announced soon,” Loke said, adding that this hinged on the RFP’s completion.
Also called trackless trams, ART is essentially a bus that drives itself by reading road markings through light detection and ranging (LIDAR) – the term ‘elevated’ points towards it getting a dedicated roadway, without having to jostle with other traffic. Kuching is already building its ART, and trials have been done in Putrajaya and Johor Bahru.
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