PROPERTY owners in Bukit Timah and Upper Bukit Timah will be cheering – and possibly reaping some capital gains – when the Malayan Railway (KTM) station moves from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands next year.

The railway cuts through the middle of the heavily residential area and locals have long been fed up of the trains clattering past their windows as they go through Bukit Timah Railway Station.

‘I think it will be a boon for many of the owners who in the past have been dismayed by the noise pollution and tracks running close to them,’ said Mr Donald Han, managing director of property consultancy Cushman & Wakefield.

He believes the values of homes in the area could rise by about 5 per cent to 8 per cent if the tracks are removed, although he added that this would simply allow them to catch up to the prices of neighbouring estates that are farther from the tracks.

‘It’s not so much that the price will go up significantly, but now the properties will be easier to sell,’ he said.

‘Previously, if you owned a home in an estate that is located right next to the track, you probably had to sell at a discount to your neighbours whose properties were not affected by the noise. But now you will be on a par with them.’

Residential developments beside or near the tracks in Bukit Timah and Upper Bukit Timah include The Sterling, 1 King Albert Park, Jardin, Mayfair Gardens, The Blossomvale, Summerhill and Glendale Park.

Ngee Ann Polytechnic real estate lecturer Nicholas Mak agreed that property values in Bukit Timah and Upper Bukit Timah could strengthen slightly if the tracks, which are an ‘eyesore’, are taken away.

But he added that the noise may not improve much as traffic in the area is still heavy.

There is also potential for some redevelopment of existing estates near the tracks, which could raise interest in the area, he said.

‘Around the Hindhede Walk area especially, the track runs alongside a lot of private condominiums,’ said Mr Mak.

‘If the track is removed, there’s a narrow strip of land sandwiched between the track and the road that can be freed up and possibly amalgamated with the existing condos if they are redeveloped.’

More generally, residential enclaves in the Bukit Timah district such as Holland Road, Ewart Park, King Albert Park and Rifle Range Road may become more attractive after the tracks go, said Ms Chua Chor Hoon, head of South-east Asia research for DTZ Debenham Tie Leung.

The commercial land site at North Buona Vista Drive that was recently triggered for public tender could also be seen more favourably, she added, as could land around the Bukit Panjang MRT station, which is under construction. The railway tracks also run through these areas.

Source: Straits Times, 26 May 2010

NEWS that a rapid transit line from Johor Baru to Singapore will be up and running by 2018 has whipped up anticipation among commuters, transport industry players and academics.

The experts, who say such a line has been a long time coming, add that it will open up a host of entertainment, shopping and leisure options for Singapore when it begins running.

The idea of a rapid transit link between the two countries has been talked about ever since the first Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) trains started rolling in Singapore 20 years ago.

A formal announcement was made on Monday, when a joint statement by the two countries revealed that it would connect the Republic to Tanjung Puteri, which is near the Malaysian end of the Causeway.

When contacted yesterday, Transport Minister Raymond Lim said he was pleased that both governments had committed themselves to the project.

‘I believe that a rapid transit link will greatly enhance connectivity between Singapore and Johor Baru,’ he said, adding that the Joint Ministerial Committee for Iskandar Malaysia – an economic zone in southern Johor about three times the size of Singapore – will oversee the implementation.

The committee has been hammering out ways in which the two countries can cooperate on Iskandar Malaysia.

The Transport Ministry said it was still studying ‘technical details’ of the link, and added that additional information would be ready ‘in the months ahead’.

Industry watchers, however, said the new line is likely to go north from Woodlands MRT station, and would likely be 4km to 5km long.

They noted that when the Singapore Government announced a northern extension of the MRT system in 1991, it said the Woodlands station would cater to a future connection to Johor Baru.

The line would benefit people on both sides of the Causeway immensely, they added.

Some 30,000 to 40,000 vehicles – mainly motorcycles – enter Singapore from Malaysia daily, and many such motorists would be tempted to switch to a train to avoid the hassle of jams and such.

Associate Professor Anthony Chin, who specialises in transport economics at the National University of Singapore, said: ‘One other benefit I can think of – if we can get people off their bikes and onto the train – would be a reduction of air pollution from motorbikes.’

The chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, Dr Lim Wee Kiak, said: ‘Singaporeans who do not drive will find travelling to Johor a breeze.

‘This will certainly give Singaporeans more options of leisure, entertainment and shopping.’

He warned, though, that potential problems such as the smuggling of illicit and banned goods would arise.

However, he added: ‘But I am confident these issues will be efficiently handled, just like at our airport, sea ports and land checkpoints currently.’

Resorts World Sentosa spokesman Robin Goh described the go-ahead for the link as a ‘breakthrough in connectivity between Singapore and Malaysia’, and expects it to benefit the tourism sectors on both sides of the border.

But would easier access to Malaysia hit Singapore retailers hard?

FairPrice, Singapore’s largest provisions supplier, does not think so.

Said its chief executive, Mr Seah Kian Peng: ‘Competition is something we’re familiar with.

‘Cost is not the only consideration. There are other aspects in our stores that contribute to the shopping experience.’

Source: Straits Times, 26 May 2010

Tg Pagar station to shift; KTM land may be developed jointly or swapped for other plots

(SINGAPORE) Many of the disputes that have dogged ties between Singapore and Malaysia over the past 20 years have stunningly been resolved.

The relationship is entering a new phase in which travelling between here and Johor Bahru will be a breeze while Singapore’s Temasek Holdings and Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional join hands for a major project to develop Malayan Railway land here.

The jigsaw puzzle fell in place as an agreement was reached to move the 78-year-old Tanjong Pagar railway station – which sits on Malaysia-owned land along the fringes of the Republic’s financial district – to Woodlands by July 1 next year. The announcements were made yesterday by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak as they stood nearly shoulder-to-shoulder during a joint press conference at the Shangri-la Hotel here after a two-day retreat.

The breakthrough could see the Points of Agreement (POA) – a document signed back in November 1990 but stalled for years – finally put to rest as early as next month.

‘There is urgency,’ said Mr Lee. ‘This matter really cannot wait indefinitely because it is already 20 years. And there are many development projects in Singapore which have been held up because the POA has not been implemented as it should have many years ago.’

One immediate fallout concerns the land owned in Singapore by Malayan Railway, which is said to be worth billions of dollars and runs alongside the tracks from Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands.

With an agreement on the Tanjong Pagar KTM station finally reached (Singapore will help move the station to the Woodlands train checkpoint), the focus shifts to developing six parcels of Malayan Railway land – one each in Tanjong Pagar, Kranji and Woodlands, and the other three in Bukit Timah.

To do this, the two countries have agreed to set up a company called M-S Pte Ltd to jointly develop the land. The company, which will be established by December at the latest, will be 60 per cent of the equity owned by the Malaysian government’s investment holding arm Khazanah Nasional Berhad, with the remaining 40 per cent stake held by Singapore’s state investment agency Temasek Holdings.

One option mentioned by Mr Lee yesterday was to obtain an updated valuation of the KTM land and make an offer to Mr Najib to swap the six land parcels for land of equivalent value in Marina South near the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort and/or the Ophir-Rochor area.

Mr Lee said he would make a trip to Kuala Lumpur in June to make such an offer to Mr Najib.

‘We will make them an offer and it’s up to them whether they want to accept. It will be very substantial, these are very valuable pieces of land we have developed,’ said Mr Lee in response to queries from the media. ‘Land prices have been moving over the past one year as the property market is quite active. That’s why we didn’t settle the land swap today.’

Song Seng Wun, a regional economist with CIMB-GK Research in Singapore, told AFP that the railway land’s worth ‘could be in the billions’ of dollars.

Meanwhile, other pieces of the jigsaw have also fallen in place and they will boost connectivity between Singapore and Johor.

Once the railway station has been shifted to Woodlands, the Singapore government will ensure that train commuters will enjoy proper bus service connections to a nearby MRT station.

The two countries agreed to build a rapid transit system link between Tanjung Puteri in Johor and Singapore by 2018. The plan is to integrate this with public transport services to improve connectivity even further. The Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) facility will be co-located in Singapore. Malaysia has the option of moving the new Woodlands KTM station to Johor after 2018 should it wish to do so.

The toll charges at the Second Link will be ‘reduced significantly’ on both sides to increase usage there, with the new amounts to be announced next month, said Mr Lee.

And instead of taxis picking up and dropping passengers only at designated stands in Singapore and Johor, they will be allowed to do so anywhere on the domestic leg of their journey.

The number of cross-border bus services will be doubled with eight additional routes, four from each side, between two pick-up points in Johor and the Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa IRs, Boon Lay, Yishun, Newton and Changi Airport in Singapore. ‘The improved rail and road connectivity would cut down the amount of transfer time,’ Credit Suisse AG’s director and Asian chief economist Joseph Tan told BT. ‘There is definitely a positive effect on aggregate and this may take some business away from the airlines too.’

Meanwhile, the existing Tanjong Pagar railway building will be conserved given its historical significance, while the old Bukit Timah railway station building at Blackmore Drive could also be preserved.

‘We see now the light at the end of the tunnel,’ said Mr Najib. ‘This is a big legacy issue and the time has come for a resolution. We cannot allow it to fester because it will always be seen as an impediment preventing us to progress and move forward in terms of our bilateral ties.’

Mr Lee added: ‘It’s a matter for rejoicing. We’ve got a good deal, and both sides are happy.’

Source: Business Times, 25 May 2010

S’pore and Malaysian PMs also announce plan for rapid transit link

A LARGE thorn in the side of Singapore-Malaysia relations was removed yesterday as leaders of both countries took big strides towards resolving a two-decade-old dispute over land owned by Malayan Railway (KTM) in Singapore.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his Malaysian counterpart, Datuk Seri Najib Razak, were all smiles as they emerged from their retreat at the Shangri-La Hotel to announce a breakthrough in the impasse over the Points of Agreement (POA) signed in 1990.

The two prime ministers told reporters that they had agreed to move the existing railway station from Tanjong Pagar to the Woodlands train checkpoint by July next year, and had sorted out how the redevelopment of the railway land left behind would be dealt with.

They had also agreed to set up a rapid transit system linking Johor Baru and Singapore by 2018. To make it easier for commuters, the link will be integrated with public transport systems on both sides.

Mr Lee and Mr Najib hailed the agreements as a boost to bilateral relations.

Referring to the POA impasse being broken, Mr Lee said: ‘It enables us to move forward on many other areas, to cooperate and work together for mutual benefit without having this outstanding issue always there.

‘If you can’t solve this, how can you talk about new things? But we can solve this, and we are talking about new things.’

He noted that the two sides had been focused on developing the bilateral relationship, knowing the region needs to work together to stay competitive.

The original POA was signed in 1990 by then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew and Malaysian Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin. However, over the next two decades, the two sides disputed its interpretation.

Following yesterday’s agreement, the railway station in Tanjong Pagar will be relocated to the Woodlands train checkpoint by July 1 next year.

Singapore will facilitate the move, and ensure bus services connect the Woodlands train checkpoint with a nearby MRT station.

A company known as M-S Pte Ltd will be established by Dec 31. Malaysia’s Khazanah Nasional Berhad will hold a 60 per cent stake, while Temasek Holdings will control 40 per cent. This company will undertake the development of railway land.

Currently six parcels of land are involved – one each in Tanjong Pagar, Kranji, and Woodlands, and three in Bukit Timah.

However, these parcels of land may be swopped for land of equivalent value in the Marina South and the Ophir-Rochor areas.

PM Lee will go to Kuala Lumpur within a month with a land swop proposal. He noted yesterday that the value of the land involved was ‘substantial’.

The transfer of the land parcels to M-S Pte Ltd for development will take effect when KTM vacates the Tanjong Pagar station.

Mr Najib called yesterday’s agreement historic, saying it was the light at the end of the tunnel for ‘a big legacy issue’.

He said: ‘With the understanding that we achieved at today’s meeting, we can say that the POA agreement, and some enhanced features of that agreement, should finally be put to rest, particularly when Prime Minister Hsien Loong meets with me in Kuala Lumpur in a month’s time.’

The groundwork for yesterday’s agreement was laid as early as 2008, when Singapore sent a proposal on how to resolve the POA dispute. PM Lee discussed the issue with Mr Najib when they met at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Peru that year. Foreign ministry officials from both sides have also been in discussion.

Following yesterday’s agreement, a joint team will be set up to iron out implementation details. This will be led by the secretary-general of the Malaysian Foreign Ministry and the permanent secretary of the Singapore Foreign Ministry. It is due to complete its work by the end of the year. From there, a written instrument will be produced, to be signed by both countries once approved by the respective governments.

The POA aside, the two leaders also ironed out a host of other matters, including Singapore’s role in the Iskandar Malaysia region in Johor, and means to increase connectivity between the two countries.

Mr Najib, in Singapore on a two-day visit, returned to Malaysia yesterday.

Source: Straits Times, 25 May 2010

Project part of plan to enhance green spaces, water bodies

WOODLANDS Waterfront – Singapore’s latest recreational addition in the north – was officially launched yesterday.

The launch, organised by Sembawang GRC, Nee Soon Central and Nee Soon East SMCs, was held in conjunction with a community walk and sports carnival attended by more than 2,500 people.

The project is part of the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s Parks and Waterbodies Plan to enhance Singapore’s green spaces and water bodies.

Woodlands Waterfront forms part of a network of parks and park connectors in the area and will be linked to the recently completed Admiralty Park and the park connector along Woodlands Centre Road and Admiralty Road West.

The project is being developed in two phases. Phase one, which features a 200m waterfront promenade connected to a 400m refurbished jetty, an interactive playground and an event plaza, has been completed.

The facilities have been designed to boost community bonding. For instance, the playground has facilities and fitness equipment to encourage residents of all age groups to interact. The waterfront promenade also offers various recreational activities to facilitate interaction.

Phase two, which will be completed by year-end, will provide a further 1.3km long waterfront promenade with fitness stations and lookout points.

Aiming for the new development to cater to the needs of the community, URA designed Woodlands Waterfront according to feedback from local people.

URA chief executive Cheong Koon Hean said: ‘The Woodlands Waterfront is part of URA’s plan to continually enhance the living environment by capitalising on natural assets to improve the quality of life.

‘It will bring the scenic northern coastline closer to people and offer more choices, particularly for residents in the north.’

Source: Business Times, 24 May 2010

Environment, water, energy, logistics and feedstock options are areas looked at

(SINGAPORE) Many new projects – ranging from a second road link with the mainland to facilitate the daily commute of its fast-growing workforce, to an LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) terminal to bring in alternative feedstocks – are being studied under the just-announced ‘Jurong Island version 2.0′ initiative to further boost the Singapore petrochemical industry’s competitiveness in the coming 10 years.

Under the move ‘to improve energy efficiency and overcome resource limitations’ on the petrochemicals island, the JTC Corporation/Economic Development Board-led initiative will look at five main areas of energy, logistics and transportation, feedstock options, environment and water, BT has learnt.

‘There will be a lot of work ahead . . . consultancy studies will be called to give their recommendations on the various focus areas,’ a JTC spokeswoman told BT, adding that more details of the plan will emerge thereafter.

The latest initiative to further gear up Jurong Island’s competitiveness – currently home to 95 global petrochemical companies with over $31 billion of investments – was first announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong at the opening of Shell’s US$3 billion petrochemical complex earlier this month.

Elaborating on the move, the JTC spokeswoman said that the multi-agency ’2.0 initiative’ will involve agencies including the Energy Market Authority, Land Transport Authority, Maritime Port Authority, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, and the Public Utilities Board, as well as the Jurong Island companies themselves.

JTC director Heah Soon Poh last week told BT that the agencies will discuss with industry players regarding both their needs as well as their participation in the initiative to upgrade the island. ‘The whole idea is to strengthen Jurong Island’s two pillars of its sustainability and its competitiveness,’ he said.

Some 38,000 workers (8,000 full-time) currently enter Jurong Island daily, and with their numbers expected to swell in the coming years as more petrochemical investors set up there, new enhanced public transport systems, like a second road link, are being planned to facilitate their commute to, and also within, the island, JTC said.

‘We are also building a barging terminal to provide a more efficient and safer means of transporting hazardous products in and out of the island,’ the JTC spokeswoman added.

On energy, PM Lee earlier indicated that the Jurong Island ’2.0 initiative’ will include schemes to use waste heat to power production processes and to convert waste carbon dioxide into useful products, thus creating more value and reducing the carbon footprint.

Mr Heah added that the ’2.0 initiative’ will similarly also look at how to tap or harness unused ‘cold’ energy from the liquefied natural gas terminal currently being built on the island.

It will also consider new water technologies, for example, using sea water desalination and recycling of waste water to ensure ample water supplies, the spokeswoman said.

The initiative will also explore alternative feedstocks and resources for petrochemical investors including LPG, she added. BT earlier reported that Shell and the EDB are looking at the possibility of building a terminal here to import LPG from Qatar to supplement the naphtha currently used by the petrochemical crackers.

Source: Business Times, 24 May 2010

THE Woodlands coast took its most significant step yet in its transformation from sleepy industrial area to bustling waterfront promenade yesterday.

Once occupied by warehouses, the waterfront now boasts a modern park with highlights such as a 400m-long jetty – the longest in Singapore – and a playground equipped with a two-storey-high ‘sky walk’.

Over 2,500 residents joined Sembawang GRC MP and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Manpower and Health Hawazi Daipi yesterday for the phase one opening of the Woodlands Waterfront.

Phase two of the $19 million, 9ha park – which will feature, among other things, nature trails and a 700m promenade which will hang over the sea – will be opened only by the end of the year.

When fully completed, the 1.5km Woodlands promenade will form a significant part of the Urban Redevelopment Authority’s (URA’s) plan to link the north region’s green spaces with park connectors, which by 2015, will stretch to 90km. Currently, the region has 19km of park connectors. URA’s national objective is to build a 150km round island route, which will allow residents to walk, cycle or jog around Singapore.

Feedback played a crucial role in designing the Woodlands Waterfront, which offers a green oasis for residents to play, exercise or gather for activities, while enjoying the sea view. Ultimately, the final concept was a marriage of all that the stakeholders – residents, grassroot leaders and designers – wanted.

Mrs Cheong Koon Hean, URA’s chief executive officer, said: ‘It will bring the scenic northern coastline closer to people and offer more recreational choices, particularly for residents in the north.’

Features that are accessible now include a large event space called Central Spine, where residents can hold community activities, and Singapore’s longest jetty.

The jetty, which dates back to the 1920s, has been refurbished and offers a close-up view of Johor Baru.

Jogging, cycling trails and rest areas weave through the promenade, together with a playground featuring a two- storey-high ‘sky walk’, a mesh bridge which people can climb up and across.

Residents who braved the scorching sun yesterday to enjoy the facilities were rewarded by the great sea view that the new waterfront offers.

Ms Wong Bee Ling, 39, who was there with her husband and children, was delighted with the facilities, especially the children’s playground and the jetty.

‘I’m pleasantly surprised, I didn’t realise there was this spot in Woodlands. The view is nice and I’ll be sure to come again in the future,’ said the shipping executive, who lives in Woodlands.

——————————————
MORE CHOICE FOR FUN

‘It will bring the scenic northern coastline closer to people and offer more recreational choices.’

Mrs Cheong Koon Hean, chief executive officer of URA


Source: Straits Times, 24 May 2010

FIVE years after Calvin Teo created a map of Singapore’s MRT network and put it online, the drawing – which includes possible future rail lines – is still creating a stir.

The map even shows a near-accurate depiction of Downtown Lines 1 and 2, which were not announced by the Ministry of Transport until two years after the map was drawn.

Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport chairman Lim Wee Kiak said: ‘The plan looks great. I do believe at the current rate we are investing in the rail system, we can achieve a network similar in density over the next 50 years.’

Mr Teo, 20, formerly a student at Raffles Institution and now an NSman, said he has always been interested in public transport.

He said information on future rail lines is ‘out there’, it just takes a bit of searching to find. His resources: Urban Redevelopment Authority masterplans, National Library archives, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) website and articles in The Straits Times.

He cautioned that not all the lines on the map will be as accurate as the Downtown Line, which is expected to be completed by 2015.

‘The further into the future a line is, the less accurate,’ he said.

He added that other enthusiasts have added to the map, putting in lines that go to Johor Baru and through Serangoon Gardens.

LTA chief executive Yam Ah Mee remembers Mr Teo well. He invited the young man over for tea when the map first surfaced in 2005.

‘It’s great that our young people are so keen about the land transport system – it belongs to them,’ Mr Yam said.

The LTA however would not comment on lines shown on the map that have not been announced in detail officially. These include the Thomson Line, Downtown Line 3 and Eastern Region Line.

Mr Yam would say only that the rail network will continue to grow with the population.

The map has nevertheless become a favourite among property agents. It has been lifted from its Wikipedia page and posted on real estate sites such as singaporepropertylisting.com.

Land transport blogger Daniel Chin, 28, said similar maps have surfaced.

‘There are unannounced new rail lines being studied and possibly implemented in the longer term, but whether or not they bear fruit depends on many factors,’ he said.

Source: Straits Times, 24 May 2010

By 2018, it will have at least 6 stations, meaning walks of 5 minutes or less to reach one

MARINA Bay is fast taking shape as Singapore’s most rail-connected district, with no fewer than five MRT lines converging at the 360 ha reclaimed waterfront plot.

The first three new lines will open between 2012 and 2014, followed by two more by 2020.

And by 2018, the Marina Bay district will have six or more MRT stations within an area no bigger than Sengkang, while people who live or work there will have to walk no more than five minutes to reach one.

Land Transport Authority transport planning director Lina Lim said: ‘The rail and road network in Marina Bay, which includes the upcoming Marina Coastal Expressway, will greatly enhance its accessibility.’

The rail lines, she added, will connect the new downtown to all the residential and commercial hubs of Singapore.

Academics say the area is a textbook example of a transport-oriented development (TOD), a catch phrase describing urban developments that maximise access to public transport.

But making it work in practice is not always as straightforward.

Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport chief Lim Wee Kiak said Marina Bay had a head start. ‘The business district was planned from scratch, hence planners were able to ensure all essential elements, including transportation, were carefully considered.

‘Since it is going to be our new business district, it has to be well connected, or super connected.’

An MRT line to Marina Bay was first announced in 1998. It was then known as the Marina Line, linking Dhoby Ghaut to the new downtown, and was to be completed in 2004. But the project was redrawn, and in 2005 it resurfaced as a Circle Line extension.

Transport researcher Lee Der Horng of the National University of Singapore said Marina Bay’s success as a TOD depends on how convenient public transport there is compared with driving.

‘Hong Kong is a very good example of a successful TOD,’ he said. ‘Hong Kong does not have COE or ERP, but the residents there choose public transport… The reason is very simple – public transport is easier and more convenient.’

Developers are excited about the prospects of a super-connected downtown. Hong Leong Group spokesman Gerry de Silva said prices of properties near MRT stations will rise as the network expands.

Last year, Transport Minister Raymond Lim told Parliament that commuters in the Marina Bay area will be able to reach an MRT station by walking no more than 400m on average. Some links will be completely underground, like the one joining City Hall station and Suntec City.

Mega developments at Marina Bay include the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort, Gardens at Marina South, and a new financial centre. Residential projects include The Sail. An international cruise centre capable of handling the world’s biggest cruise liners will also be built there.

The Central Promontory, just across from the upcoming Downtown MRT station, will be a venue for entertainment and the arts.

But on the question of whether the new vibrancy will call for MRT trains to run longer hours, Associate Professor Anthony Chin, who specialises in transport economics at NUS, said: ‘It takes more than night trains to make a city liveable and globally competitive. Someone has to pay for the increased cost of more night services. We have to weigh the incremental costs against the incremental benefits.’

Source: Straits Times, 24 May 2010

Singapore and Malaysia capped a historic day in relations on Monday with agreement on a long outstanding bilateral issue.

After 20 years, both sides have arrived at a solution on the Malayan Railway Land in Singapore.

The leaders of the two countries agreed to move the station at the heart of the city centre in Tanjong Pagar to Woodlands Train checkpoint, near the border by the 1 July 2011.

The smiles said it all – of a retreat that has been fruitful with significant moves.

The centrepiece must surely be the issue of the railway land and lines, spelt out in the Points of Agreement (POA) signed in 1990.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong: “Our focus has been developing our bilateral relationship at a time when we face many challenges in an uncertain and rapidly globalising world.

“There are many competitive alternative centres growing in Asia where we need to work together bilaterally in ASEAN and where we also need to clear issues which have been hanging over us for some time so that we can move forward and develop a win-win relationship.

“It is a matter for rejoicing. It is a good deal. Both sides are happy and this will benefit both sides considerably.”

Malaysia’s Prime Minister Najib Razak said: “A year ago, when we met, we decided that we wouldn’t allow outstanding bilateral issues to be in the way of developing and strengthening bilateral ties and move forward in areas where we could achieve common agreement between our two sides.

“With that positive mindset in mind, we have achieved much within a year starting with the officials from both sides who have been working very hard to find a common ground.

“Today is quite historic because we see now the light at the end of the tunnel with respect to an outstanding issue which has been lingering for almost 20 years.”

Having waited this long, the next move is to move fast.

PM Lee said: “There is urgency. This matter really cannot wait indefinitely because it is already 20 years. And there are many development projects in Singapore which have been held up because the POA has not been implemented as it should have been many years ago.”

So the 1990 Points of Agreement has now been supplemented by new terms and conditions to maximise the potential of the Malayan Railway Lands in Singapore.

When the Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB station) moves to the Woodlands train checkpoint by 1 July 2011, Malaysia will co-locate its railway Customs, Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) facility there.

On its part, Singapore would ensure that there are bus services to connect KTMB station at Woodlands with a nearby MRT station for the convenience of train passengers.

Another key issue settled is the development of several land parcels linked to the train line.

Both countries will also set up a company known as M-S Pte Ltd by December 31 this year.

Malaysia will have a 60 per cent stake under Khazanah Nasional Berhard while Singapore will have a 40 per cent share to be held by Temasek Holdings.

This company will handle the joint development of three parcels of land in Tanjong Pagar, Kranji and Woodlands as well as another three pieces of land in Bukit Timah.

These land parecls would be swapped based on the equivalent value for pieces of land in Marina South and Ophir-Rochor.

Both sides will conduct valuation studies.

Prime Minister Lee will visit Kuala Lumpur within a month to discuss the land swap.

The transfer of the land parcel to M-S Pte Ltd will take effect at the time when KTMB vacates the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station.

Mr Lee added: “Land prices have been moving over this last one year. You have seen the property market is quite active. That is the reason why we did not settle the land swap today. I wanted an updated valuation.

“On the basis of updated valuations, we will make them an offer and it is up to them whether they want to take the offer for the swap. It is substantial. These are very valuable pieces of land if they are developed.

“And that is why the POA as it was and even more now as it has been updated and rounded up is a win- win proposal for both countries because it enables us to develop the land.

“It enables M-S Private Limited to share in the upside of the land which is KTM land and I think enables us to move forward in so many other areas to cooperate and work together for mutual benefit without having this outstanding issue always there a question mark. If you can’t solve this, how can you talk about new things?”

“So with the understanding we have achieved at today’s meeting, we can more or less say that the POA agreement with some enhanced features should be finally put to rest particularly when PM Lee meets me in a month’s time.

“The spirit and political undertaking is to find a resolution on a mutually beneficial manner so that both countries can benefit the finalisation of the enhanced POA agreement.”

Both leaders also agreed the Tanjong Pagar Railway Station’s passenger terminal will be conserved given its historical significance. It will also be the centrepiece for the proposed new development on this site.

The job is now in the hands of a joint implementation team.

It has to complete its work by the December 31.

For joint statement by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Malaysia Prime Minister Najib Razak at the Singapore-Malaysia Leaders’ Retreat, click here.

Source: Channel News Asia, 24 May 2010