THE Government should scrap the Kuala Lumpur – Singapore High Speed Rail (HSR) project as the it would no longer be financially viable post the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Both business and leisure travellers would be embarking on cost-cutting measures after the pandemic but the Government is still using pre-COVID-19 figures to estimate its future profits.
“If they don’t call-off the project, it’s going to become another ‘white elephant’ project, with our future generation bearing the brunt of paying off its debts,” Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) central committee member Sharan Raj told FocusM.
The project was mooted by former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak during his tenure, at an initial cost of RM110 bil.
After a huge uproar, the price tag was reduced to RM70 bil. Najib reiterated the project would contribute RM209 bil to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) and create over 400,000 jobs.
However, his successor, Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad scrapped the project but now has been revived by the Perikatan Nasional Government.
Travellers are budget conscious
Sharan said that after the pandemic is over, entrepreneurs will cut down on travelling as they have embraced technology to do business, such as conducting virtual meetings and webinars.
“They have embraced this new concept due to the pandemic and it will become the new norm. Companies have found it cost-effective and time saving.
“So not many company executives are going be crisscrossing between Johor Bharu and Singapore like in the past where they need to pay for transport, accommodation, food and others,” he said.
As for leisure travellers, Sharan said they too will embark on cost-cutting measures and use the Electric Train Service (ETS) and Johor Bahru–Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) instead.
“Tourists are budget conscious and they would prefer to take the cheapest transportation. Even in Japan, tourists prefer to take their buses instead of the high-speed rail service,” he added.
The PSM leader urged the Government to conduct another study on the project’s cost and benefit projection, to allow the latter to make a more informed decision.
“Remember that we’re taking a massive loan to finance this project, which will take decades for us to pay it back.
“And if the Government is thinking about increasing ticket prices to keep HSR afloat, it will only put-off tourists from using the transport system even further,” Sharan added. – Dec 8, 2020.
