Call To Expedite Tanjung Aru-Tenom Train Service Project

TENOM, April 28 (Bernama) -- Parti Bersatu Sabah (PBS) has called on the federal government to expedite the project to upgrade the train service from Tanjung Aru to Tenom.

"Since the cause of delay has been identified as due to the issue of allocations, then the government should pump in additional funds in order to complete the project for the benefit of the rural communities," PBS secretary-general Datuk Radin Malleh said here today.

According to Radin, the project was meant to upgrade the service not only up to Tenom town but also the original track up to Melalap, which is about 14 kilometres from Tenom.

He said he was optimistic that with the government's efforts to modernise public transport in the country, the project would be completed before end of the Ninth Malaysia Plan.

Radin, who is also the Melalap State Assemblyman, also welcomed a proposal by Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Rahim Bakri yesterday for a rail network to connect all the major areas in the north like Kudat.

He agreed that the railway service could be the backbone of the people's transportation system in the state as in some developed countries in the world.

"It can be the main means of transport, other than the economic spin-offs it will bring to the various economic sectors. This is especially so for the rural population in the countryside," Radin said, adding that the train service was not only cheaper but more reliable and less stressful.

In this respect, he suggested that the relevant authorities, particularly the Sabah Railway Department, should get ready with plan for a railway network system for the state.