Malaysia welcomes the arrival of the first automated rapid transit system

MOBILUS Sdn Bhd, a 51:49 joint venture company established between Ireka Corporation Bhd and China’s state-owned CRRC Urban Traffic Co Ltd has achieved a significant milestone in Malaysia’s green urban transportation market.

Set up to pursue urban transportation business opportunities in Malaysia and the South East Asia region, Mobilus will be welcoming the arrival of the first Automated Rapid Transit (ART) system into Johor.

The southern state has been designated as a site for a bus pilot testing programme which will be launched in Iskandar Malaysia in 1Q 2021.

Malaysia will be the first country in the region to potentially adopt this technology.

To recap, Mobilus signed a purchase agreement with CRRC Urban Traffic in December 2019 to acquire the first unit of ART system for the pilot project.

The CRRC Group is the world’s largest manufacturer of rolling stock and rail-related products and systems.

In conjunction with the bus pilot testing programme in Johor, a technical feasibility study will be undertaken by the Malaysia Institute of Transport (MITRANS), an institute of Universiti Teknologi MARA.

Consequently, MITRANS will provide a feasibility report on the adoption of ART as a new urban transport system with reference to the current road infrastructure and the public transport environment in Malaysia.

“The arrival of the ART is a great step forward for our urban transportation business in the year ahead,” Ireka’s group managing director Datuk Lai Voon Hon pointed out.

“The planning for the ART bus pilot testing programme in Iskandar Malaysia which will showcase seven other bus manufacturers is well underway after some delays due to the widespread global pandemic in 2020, and we hope to have the project up and running by early 2021.”

Furthermore, this will be one of the test lines for the larger Iskandar Malaysia Bus Rapid Transit (IMBRT) project, a comprehensive transit system for Iskandar Malaysia that covers a network of more than 2,000km in Phase 1.

Ireka opined that the implementation of the ART Pilot Project will be a key stepping stone towards helping improve public transportation in Iskandar Malaysia and further promote the rapid development of the regional economy and society. – Jan 20, 2021

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