PETALING JAYA, June 1 — Sunway Bhd has contributed RM123 million to construct the elevated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)-Sunway Line costing a total of RM634 million, said Sunway Group Founder and Chairman, Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah.
BRT-Sunway Line is implemented under the innovative Public-Private Partnership (PPP) programme via the collaboration between Prasarana Malaysia Bhd and Sunway Bhd.
“We contributed a total of RM123 million even though it was RM90 million in the original contract,” he said at the official launch of the country’s first elevated BRT system by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak here today.
He said additional funds were needed to construct the elevated covered walkways, car parking bays and other safety and security features to enhance accessibility and connectivity.
Cheah said this first-of-its-kind project in Malaysia would set the minimum benchmark standard and model for all future BRT lines and public-private initiatives.
“We hope that the success of this project would inspire other corporate companies to collaborate with us under the PPP umbrella for new initiatives to further promote effective public transport services in Malaysia,” he said.
The project was first launched by Najib who is also Finance Minister on June 9, 2012.
It combines the convenient features of a light rail transit system with the usage of dedicated lanes, environmentally-friendly electric buses and customer-friendly infrastructure.
Ridership is forecast at 2,400 passengers per hour this year and will increase gradually over the years.
By 2035, the ridership is expected to reach 5,200 passengers per hour. — Bernama
