Call upon Abang Jo to be more down to earth and stop blowing hot air about the LRT line from Kuching to Serian and now the electric buses for Sarawak

I call upon Abang Jo to be more down to earth and stop blowing hot air about the LRT line from Kuching to Serian and now the electric buses for Sarawak.

It is one thing to be visionary, but a totally different thing for blowing hot air and building castles in the sky.

On his suggestion to have the Light Rail Train (LRT) system up and running connecting Kuching to Serian, I do not intend to pour cold water but merely to bring Abang Jo down to earth with the following facts:

1. LRT are for transport within an urban centre not inter-town transport. Inter-town lines normally do not use LRT. They use normal commuter trains.
2. A LRT expansion project in Kuala Lumpur covering 34 km, construction of which commenced in 2010, costs RM7 billion. Given the depreciation of Ringgit and general inflation, it would take approximately RM10 billion to construct the same length of LRT in Sarawak now. For Kuching-Serian, that would be RM20 billion. Add Samarahan line, it will finish all the Sarawak’s Government reserve in this ONE project.
3. Even with the LRT line up and running, poor people will still have to walk for hours to get to the respective stations because of poor bus connectivity.
4. Can the poor in Sarawak afford the expansive fares of LRT services?

On his suggestion of having electricity buses in the future, I will rather call upon the Government to focus more about improving the present public bus services.

It is DAP’s proposal that the State Government should improve the public bus service first before talking about LRTs and electric buses. Learn to walk before one tries to jump.

To improve the public bus service in and around Kuching, covering up to 24th Mile Kuching-Serian Road, DAP’s proposal are as follows:

1. Government to buy out and take over all the public bus companies in Kuching area;
2. Government to inject funds to purchase another 200 more new buses, which is approximately 2 times the present number of buses in operation.
3. Government to inject funds for the full operation of these buses to improve its regularity, comfort and frequency.
4. To provide FREE bus services for the first 5 years.

For all these, the conservative estimates is only RM200 million for the first year and thereafter, less than RM80 million each year.

The benefits of free improved public bus services are manifold: reduce traffic jams, reduce transport costs (at least RM300 per working adult per month), reduce the need to purchase car, reduce accidents, increases employment opportunities.

Therefore, DAP calls upon Abang Jo to start from the basics before making his grandeur but empty statements.