TRANSPORT ISSUES COULD FACTOR IN UPCOMING STATE POLLS
With the RTS Link set to begin operations in January 2027, urban planning analyst Tan warned that the absence of a rail-based feeder system on the Johor Bahru side poses a “significant operational risk” and could worsen congestion across the city.
The stakes are heightened by the launch of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ), which is expected to accelerate the movement of people, businesses and investments across the border.
Transport experts added that Loke’s promise of more buses and pedestrian bridges to connect passengers to neighbouring malls, hotels and apartments is merely a stopgap measure given that a large number of these travellers are Johoreans who commute to Singapore to work and require connectivity to their homes in the outskirts of the city centre.
Tan told CNA: “Unlike an elevated system, buses must share JB’s heavily congested roads and bottlenecks (like the Tebrau and Skudai corridors).
“Even with dedicated bus lanes, enforcement in JB is notoriously difficult. The sheer volume of buses required to disperse 10,000 passengers an hour will create localised gridlock around the Bukit Chagar transport hub itself,” he added.
Tan acknowledged, however, that plans to expand the national rail network in southern Johor, including links to towns such as Kluang, could help divert some regional commuters before they reach the city.
Transport analyst Nasser Ismail, who previously served as a senior official with the Iskandar Regional Development Authority, said the bigger challenge remains last-mile connectivity.
Without an extensive feeder network, commuters would continue to face what he described as a “trunk-line problem”, where the main rail connection exists but onward connections to residential areas such as Pasir Gudang, Skudai and Tebrau remain inadequate.
He also noted that Johor authorities have identified 77 traffic congestion hotspots across Johor Bahru, Pasir Gudang, Iskandar Puteri and Kulai.
While the government has proposed feeder bus services and park-and-ride facilities near the Causeway, Nasser argued that these measures “do not solve last-mile connectivity for the broader urban area”.