SINGAPORE: Singapore and Malaysia have agreed to suspend the construction of a billion dollar train project linking the city-state to the southern Malaysian state of Johor, their transport ministers said on Tuesday. The ministers announced at a joint press conference in Singapore that the delay will be until September 30 and that Malaysia will pay Singapore compensation for abortive costs. "If by 30 September 2019, Malaysia does not proceed with the RTS (Rapid Transit System) Link Project, Malaysia will also bear the agreed costs incurred by Singapore," Khaw Boon Wan and Anthony Loke said in a joint statement. "This does not mean that we are terminating the project," Loke told reporters. The neighbouring countries last year also suspended a high-speed rail project linking Singapore to Malaysia's capital, Kuala Lumpur, which analysts estimated to cost around $17 billion.

Source: Bangkok Post May 21, 2019 04:41 UTC