The Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link Project can now resume after the Bilateral Agreement was signed between the governments of Malaysia and Singapore on 30 July 2020.

The agreement was signed by Malaysian Transport Minister Datuk Seri Ir Dr Wee Ka Siong and his Singaporean Counterpart Mr Ong Ye Kung.

An exchange of documents ceremony was then held at the Johor-Singapore Causeway which saw Ir Dr Wee and Ong standing side by side on their respective sides of the border holding the documents.

Malaysian Prime Minister, Tan Sri Dato’ Haji Muhyiddin Haji Mohd Yassin and his Singaporean counterpart, Mr Lee Hsien Loong, were also at the ceremony to witness the symbolic exchange of documents. Also present at the historic event were Malaysia Minister of Foreign Affairs Dato’ Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein, Minister of International Trade and Industry Dato’ Seri Mohamed Azmin Ali and Johor Menteri Besar Datuk Ir Hasni Mohammad.

Besides Lee and Ong, Singapore Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr Vivian Balakrishnan and former Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister of Transport Mr Khaw Boon Wan also attended the ceremony.

The signing marked a major milestone for Malaysia Rapid Transit System Sdn Bhd (MRTS), the developer and owner of the civil infrastructure for the Malaysian section of the RTS Link. MRTS is a wholly owned subsidiary of Malaysia Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd.

The total length of the alignment for the RTS Link is 4 km long of which 2.7 km is in Malaysia while 1.3km is over in Singapore. It will consist of an elevated section in Malaysia whereas a mixture of elevated and underground sections will be built in Singapore.

The RTS Link station for Malaysia will be located at Bukit Chagar, Johor Bahru and will be connected to a new Customs Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) facility. Over at the Singapore side, the station will be situated at the Woodlands North Station which will also have its own CIQ.

The civil infrastructure works for the RTS Link Project is expected to be completed by end 2024 with the full opening estimated to be by the end of 2026.

Land Transport Authority of Singapore (LTA) will take on a similar role as MRTS for the Singapore section.

The operations of RTS Link will be managed by RTS Operations Pte Ltd, a joint venture between Prasarana RTS Operations Sdn Bhd (PROSPER), a wholly owned subsidiary of Prasarana Malaysia Berhad and SMRT RTS Pte Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of SMRT Corporation Ltd.