PRASARANA Malaysia Bhd president and group chief executive officer (CEO) Muhammad Nizam Alias said the government should consider introducing tax deductions for public transport fares in the upcoming tabling of Budget 2021.
“There also needs to be short- and long-term strategies focusing on business diversification and digital technology, including working together with stakeholders in combating and containing COVID-19,” he told Bernama.
“This includes regaining the trust of existing commuters and attracting new ones to use our services,” he added.
Muhammad Nizam also hopes that the government will consider continuing the My30 initiative, among others.
Prasarana had recently said it would miss its target of positive earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation for 2021 as it expects to incur losses of between RM200 mil and RM500 mil this year.
As such, Muhammad Nizam said appropriate incentives need to be offered with close and careful observation of the circumstances.
For example, he said, government cash incentives to the B40 and M40 groups could be provided in the form of subsidised unlimited travel passes for trains and buses, with the extension and expansion of the My30 unlimited monthly travel passes in the Klang Valley and major cities.
“We can also look at (introducing) a special electric tariff for public transport and related facilities, special price or subsidised fuel for public transport operators, and rental relief or subsidy for retail operators at the stations,” he said.
The My30 initiative offers an unlimited 30-day travel pass for RM30 for Malaysian users of LRT, MRT, KL Monorail and Rapid KL stage buses in the Klang Valley, from June 15 until the end of this year.
Echoing Muhammad Nizam’s views, Malaysian Institute of Transport (Industry Network and Commercialisation) deputy director Shahrin Nasir said the extension of My30 would be helpful for commuters in other states too.
Meanwhile, Malaysia Rail Link (MRL) chief executive officer Datuk Seri Darwis Abdul Razak is hopeful that the government would continue to promote rail industry as a safe mode of transportation in the Budget 2021 that will be tabled on Nov 6.
“We need initiatives that would help the industry mitigate the impact of COVID-19.
“As a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Minister of Finance Inc, MRL also looks forward to the continuous support from the federal government to facilitate the smooth implementation of the East Coast Rail Link (ECRL) project,” he said. – Oct 22, 2020
