MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line

9  MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line
Overview
Native name	Laluan MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang
Type	Mass rapid transit (MRT)
System	Rapid KL
Status	Under construction
Locale	Klang Valley
Termini	Sungai Buloh Kajang
Stations	31 + 3 reserved stations
Services	Sungai Buloh – Kuala Lumpur – Kajang
Daily ridership	400,000 daily (expected)
Line number	9  (dark green)
Website	mymrt.com.my mymrt.com.my/en/sbk/home
Operation
Opened	July 2017
Owner	MRT Corp
Operator(s)	Rapid Rail (Prasarana Malaysia)
Depot(s)	Sungai Buloh and Kajang
Rolling stock	58 4-car trainsets of Siemens Inspiro
Technical
Line length	51 km (32 mi)
Track length	0 km (0 mi)
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route number	9

MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line
Legend
1  to Putrajaya Sentral  11  S01 Sungai Buloh S02 Kampung Selamat  1  S03 RRI(future station) Sungai Buloh Depot S04 Kwasa Damansara  11  S05 Teknologi(future station) S06 Kwasa Sentral S07 Kota Damansara S08 Surian S09 Mutiara Damansara S10 Bandar Utama  10  S11 Taman Tun Dr Ismail S12 Phileo Damansara S13 Bukit Kiara(future station)  12  S14 Pusat Bandar Damansara S15 Semantan Phase 1: opening Q4-2016 Phase 2: opening Q3-2017 S16 Muzium Negara  5  KL Sentral  8   1  2  Kuala Lumpur S17 Pasar Seni  1  2   5  Plaza Rakyat  3  4  S18 Merdeka S19 Bukit Bintang  8   11  S20 Tun Razak Exchange S21 Cochrane  11  S22 Maluri  3  S23 Taman Pertama S24 Taman Midah S25 Taman Mutiara S26 Taman Connaught S27 Taman Suntex S28 Sri Raya S29 Bandar Tun Hussein Onn S30 Batu 11 Cheras S31 Bukit Dukung Kajang Depot S32 Sungai Jernih S33 Stadium Kajang  1  S34 Kajang  1

The MRT1 (initial name) or MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line (interim name) or SBK Line (shortform name) is a new rapid transit line under construction in Klang Valley and the first of three planned lines in the Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit Project.

When completed, the line will be one of the components of the Klang Valley Public Transport System.

Background

The MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line is the first of the three planned Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit lines to be constructed, with estimated contract value of MYR36 billion.^[1]

The line starts from Sungai Buloh which is located to the north-west of Kuala Lumpur, runs through the city centre of Kuala Lumpur, and ends in Kajang, a fast developing town located to the south-east of Kuala Lumpur. The line serves a corridor with an estimated population of 1.2 million people.^[1]

Phase One of the MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line from Sungai Buloh to Semantan will become operational by the end of 2016 while Phase Two from Semantan to Kajang will become operational by July 2017, allowing trains to serve the entire line.^[1]

Announced in 2006, the line was initially planned as a LRT at 43 km in length, linking the densely populated areas of Damansara in the northwest and Cheras in the southeast, through the central business district of Kuala Lumpur city.The government then decided to extend the alignment at both ends to Sungai Buloh and Kajang respectively, adding 8 km to the line for a total of 51 km. In addition, the line was changed to an MRT system, with higher capacity trains.^[2]

The line will be operated by a subsidiary of Prasarana, Rapid Rail when construction is completed.^[3]

Line information

Alignment

The first MRT Line covers a span of 51 kilometres from Sungai Buloh to the Kajang, passing the Kuala Lumpur city centre where the alignment goes underground. The line will be serving a corridor with 1.2 million residents within the Klang Valley region from north-west to the south-west of Kuala Lumpur. According to MRT Corp, the four-car train sets with the capacity of 1,200 passengers will be in place to serve some 400,000 passengers per day, with a headway of 3.5 minutes.^[4]

Amendments after public display

After the MRT project was formally launched on 8 July 2011, the following amendments have been made to the original proposed alignment following the public display exercise between March and May 2011:^[5]-

• 31 stations instead of 35 stations will be built and provisions have been made for 3 more stations
  • Future station 1 (RRI) located between Kampung Selamat and Kwasa Damansara stations
  • Future station 2 (Teknologi) located between Kwasa Sentral and Kota Damansara stations
  • Future station 3 (Bukit Kiara) located between Phileo Damansara and Pusat Bandar Damansara stations
• The proposed Section 17 was dropped
• The location of the proposed TTDI station was moved around 300m southwards to the former Caltex petrol stations. This was due to complaints from Taman Tun Dr Ismail and Damansara Kim residents.^[6]
• Bukit Bintang East and West stations have been combined into one, moved and integrated with KL Monorail station. The station was named Bukit Bintang Central Station and subsequently Bukit Bintang Station.
• Park and Ride facilities has been increased to 16 from 13 previously.
• Taman Mesra station has been removed.
• Adjustments to the alignment:
  • Shifting alignment into the former Rubber Research Institute of Malaysia land in Sungai Buloh to cater for future development
  • Adjusting the alignment adjacent to Bandar Kajang station to avoid going through the town centre and through Kajang Stadium.

Stations

There will be 31 stations along the Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line with 7 stations located at the designated underground railway system for a distance of 9.5 kilometres.^[4] Route Map^[7]

The stations announced by MRT Corp on its official website are listed as below in order.^[8] All the station names are interim and subject to change.

Code	Final Name	Working Name	Platform type	Position	Park n Ride	Interchange/Notes
Stage 1 Opening Q4-2016
S01	Sungai Buloh	Sungai Buloh	Island	Elevated	✓	Exit paid area station to  1  Seremban Line , KTM ETS and KTM Intercity services.
S02	Kampung Selamat	Kampung Baru Sungai Buloh	Side	Elevated
S03	RRI		Side	Elevated		Reserved station
S04	Kwasa Damansara	Kota Damansara	Stacked island cross-platform interchange (Terminus)	Elevated	✓	Kwasa Damansara is built as an elevated station that is part of the  9  Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line and the  11  Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya Line at Sungai Buloh area, and serves as cross-platform interchange station between the two lines. Google Maps. When the  11  Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya Line operations commence in 2021, the service will begin from Kwasa Damansara Station. This brings the total no. of stations for the  11  Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya Line to 39 including Kwasa Damansara, Kampung Selamat and Sungai Buloh station which are being built under the  9  Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line. Therefore, the  9  Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line will also begin from Kwasa Damansara station. This will reduce the number of stations for the  9  Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line from 31 to 29 stations.
S05	Teknologi		Side	Elevated		Reserved station
S06	Kwasa Sentral	Taman Industri Sungai Buloh	Side	Elevated	✓
S07	Kota Damansara	PJU5	Side	Elevated		Construction nearby SEGi University Kota Damansara.
S08	Surian	Dataran Sunway	Side	Elevated		Construction nearby Sunway Giza shopping centre.
S09	Mutiara Damansara	The Curve	Side	Elevated		Construction nearby The Curve shopping centre & IKEA Mutiara Damansara.
S10	Bandar Utama	1 Utama	Side	Elevated		Interchange station to proposed LRT3 -  10  Bandar Utama-Klang Line towards Johan Setia. Constructed beside Sri Pentas nearby 1 Utama shopping centre.
S11	Taman Tun Dr Ismail	TTDI	Side	Elevated	✓
S12	Phileo Damansara	Seksyen 16	Island	Elevated	✓
S13	Bukit Kiara		Side	Elevated	✓	Reserved station
S14	Pusat Bandar Damansara	Pusat Bandar Damansara	Side	Elevated	✓
S15	Semantan	Semantan	Side	Elevated
Stage 2 Opening Q3-2017
S16	Muzium Negara	KL Sentral	Island	Underground		Interchange station to  1  Seremban Line,  2  Port Klang Line,  5  Kelana Jaya Line,  6  KLIA Ekspres,  7  KLIA Transit and  8  KL Monorail. The station is located near the National Museum (Muzium Negara) and linked to the KL Sentral transport hub by 600 meter pedestrian walkway. Theme: Transition, History of Kuala Lumpur's Public Transportation
S17	Pasar Seni	Pasar Seni	Island	Underground		Interchange station to  5  Kelana Jaya Line. Walking distance to Pos Malaysia Berhad building and Kuala Lumpur railway station for  1  Seremban Line and  2  Port Klang Line. There also bus hubs above this station that connects buses from Kuala Lumpur to Petaling Jaya. Connecting to the Central Market (Pasar Seni). Construction next to Pasar Seni LRT Station. Theme: Confluence Between Two Rivers
S18	Merdeka	Merdeka	Island	Underground		Interchange station to  3  Ampang Line &  4  Sri Petaling Line via linkway to Plaza Rakyat station.[9] Located nearby a proposed skyscraper named Warisan Merdeka, the future tallest building in Malaysia, and also the historic Stadium Merdeka. Theme: Independence, Spirit of Nationhood
S19	Bukit Bintang	Bukit Bintang Central	Split	Underground		Interchange station linkway to  8  KL Monorail at (Bukit Bintang station).[10] An underground pedestrian walkway will also be built to connect some iconic building in the region including Pavilion KL, Starhill Gallery and Fahrenheit 88 shopping malls.[11] Theme: Dynamic
S20	Tun Razak Exchange	Pasar Rakyat	Stacked island cross-platform interchange	Underground		Located nearby the proposed Kuala Lumpur International Financial District (KLIFD)[12] Provisions for cross-platform interchange with  11  Sungai Buloh-Serdang-Putrajaya Line. Theme: Islamic Corporate
S21	Cochrane	Cochrane	Island	Underground		Nearby IKEA Cheras. Pedestrian link to up-coming Sunway Velocity. Theme: Urban Living
S22	Maluri	Maluri	Island	Underground	✓	Interchange station to  3  Ampang Line. Pedestrian links to AEON Taman Maluri as well as up-coming Sunway Velocity. Theme: New Generation
S23	Taman Pertama	Taman Bukit Ria	Side	Elevated
S24	Taman Midah	Taman Bukit Mewah	Side	Elevated	✓
S25	Taman Mutiara	Leisure Mall	Side	Elevated		Located nearby Cheras Leisure Mall shopping centre.
S26	Taman Connaught	Plaza Phoenix	Side	Elevated	✓	Located nearby Cheras Sentral shopping centre.
S27	Taman Suntex	Taman Suntex	Island	Elevated	✓
S28	Sri Raya	Taman Cuepacs	Side	Elevated	✓
S29	Bandar Tun Hussein Onn	Bandar Tun Hussein Onn	Side	Elevated	✓
S30	Batu 11 Cheras	1. Balakong 2. Bukit Dukung	Side	Elevated
S31	Bukit Dukung	1. Taman Koperasi 2. Taman Koperasi Cuepacs	Side	Elevated	✓
S32	Sungai Jernih	1. Saujana Impian 2. Sungai Kantan	Side	Elevated	✓
S33	Stadium Kajang	Bandar Kajang	Side	Elevated
S34	Kajang	Kajang	Terminus	Elevated	✓	Interchange station to  1  Seremban Line.

Rolling stock

The rolling stock will be provided by Siemens/CSR Nanjing Puzhen with a partnership with SMH Rail Consortium Sdn Bhd. The trains will be driverless with a capacity of 1,200 passengers in a 4-car trainsets formation. The rolling stock of Siemens Inspiro will be supplied same as the current model for Warsaw Metro M1 trainsets.^[13]

Car length (over coupler): 18.6 m to 20.1 m

Number of passenger doors per car side / door width: 4 / 1400 mm

Traction power supply: 750 VDC, 3rd rail

The 4-car trainsets will be maintained at 2 purpose built facilities, Sungai Buloh and Kajang depots, located nearby Kwasa Damansara and Sungai Kantan stations respectively.^[14]

History

Chronology

• August 2006 – The LRT Kota Damansara-Cheras Line proposal was first made known public by the then deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, under a RM10 billion government allocation for the improvement and expansion of the public transportation network in Klang Valley. It was then reported that the line would stretch "some 30 km" through Kuala Lumpur.^[15] The combined cost of the new line and the proposed extensions of two existing LRT Kelana Jaya Line and LRT Ampang Line were estimated at RM7 bn back then.^[16]
• July 2007 – The Ministry of Transport had approved the alignment of the new line, which would then be tabled to the Cabinet for approval.^[17] The Government was then saying the line would be completed by 2012.^[18] With an average construction period taking three to four years, work should have started by end-2008 to meet the deadline, although that did not happen.
• June 2008 – It was reported that the line would comprise 30 stations and stretch 40 km in length through the densely populated areas of Damansara and Cheras, as well as the central business district of Kuala Lumpur city. Cost estimates for the line were then reported at RM4-5 billion, with the majority of the stations elevated.^[19]
• September 2008 – It was reported that a distance of 5.9 km stretching from Brickfields to Bukit Bintang will be underground, although the number of such underground stations was not announced. It was during this time that the line was said to be 42 km with 32 stations in total, and is being considered for as a mass rapid transit (MRT) system, taking into consideration the suitability of this system based on a population catchment area 878,000.^[20] It was also reported that the detailed design stage for the line would commence in 2Q2009.
• December 2008 – The Edge Daily reported that the line was set for completion in 2014. The Transport minister of Malaysia, Datuk Seri Ong Tee Keat, declined comment when probed for further details on the cost and timeline.
• May 2009 – The Edge Daily reported that the government would be calling for tenders for the LRT Kelana Jaya Line and LRT Ampang Line extension projects but there was no indication on the implementation of the new Kota Damansara-Cheras Line.^[21]
• September 2009 – Prasarana group managing director Datuk Idrose Mohamed said that the new line could end up longer than the earlier announced Kota Damansara alignment, although he did not offer any further details.^[22] It is believed that the line terminus could stretch out further north from Kota Damansara to Sungai Buloh.
• April 2010 – The Edge Daily reported that a proposal to extend the line by 16 km is being studied by the government. The proposal calls for the line to be extended from Kota Damansara to Sungai Buloh (additional 3 km) and from Cheras to Kajang (additional 9 km). An additional line from Damansara Utama to Kelana Jaya (additional 4 km) is also being studied. This will bring the total length of the line to 59 km.^[23]
• June 2010 – During the tabling of the 10th Malaysia Plan, Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak announced that the government is now considering a RM36 billion Klang Valley MRT proposal from Gamuda Berhad and MMC Corporation Berhad. Although the specific details of the alignment have not been revealed, it is reported to consist of 3 lines, one of which has the same general alignment as that of the Kota Damansara-Cheras line. It is not known if this new MRT plan will replace, or be in addition to the original Kota Damansara-Cheras line proposal. While the MRT plan is generally welcomed, observers of public transportation development and the public have become increasingly frustrated and disillusioned with the lack of any real progress in the development of the Klang Valley mass rail system, resulting from the incessant announcements by the government but without any work done.^{[24][25][26][27]}
• December 2010 – Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak announced that the MRT Project had been approved by the cabinet and the construction of the first line from Sungai Buloh to Kajang would begin in July 2011.^[28] The government had appointed MMC-Gamuda JV Sdn Bhd as Project Delivery Partner where it would play the role project manager. The whole project would be divided into nine parcels in which will be done on open tender basis. 10 km of the line would be underground and 50 km above ground. MMC-Gamuda would be barred from bidding for any tender except for the tunnelling works (the most expensive portion). The project would introduce 60 km of rail tracks plus 35 new stations.^[29]
• 14 February 2011 – SPAD began a 3-month mandatory public display of the alignment at participating municipals and the operator's Prasarana headquarters to obtain objections, complaints and suggestions from the public.
• 8 July 2011 – Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak officially launched the project in a ceremony. The alignment was adjusted following the public display with the final alignment having a length of 51 km with 31 stations and 16 Park and Ride facilities.^[30]
• 17 August 2011 – The government announced that a new company under the Finance Ministry had been formed to take control of the project from Prasarana. The new company, MRT Corp, would be the asset owner of the project. The company would officially take over from Pasarana on 1 September 2011. Motivation for creating this company was to ensure timely execution and focused vision on the project.^[31]
• 21 October 2011 – MRT Corp shortlisted 5 companies to carry out underground works. They were MMC Gamuda Joint Venture, Sinohydro Group, Hyundai-Gadang-Chengal Jaya Joint Venture, Taisei Corp, and the China Railway Group Ltd.^[32]
• 1 November 2011 – Bus Stand Klang ceased operations and would be demolished to make way for new underground MRT station.^[33]
• 26 January 2012 - MRT Corp announced the award of the first two civil works contracts for the construction of the MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line. IJM Construction Sdn Bhd was appointed the contractor for Package V5 (stretching from the start of the southern elevated section at Cheras 3rd Mile to Plaza Phoenix) at a tender price of RM974 million, while Ahmad Zaki Sdn Bhd was appointed the contractor for Package V6 (stretching from Plaza Phoenix to Bandar Tun Hussein Onn in Cheras) at a tender price of RM764 million.
• 8 March 2012 - MRT Corp announced the pre-qualification of 28 companies to bid for six System Works Packages for the MRT Sungai BUloh-Kajang Line. Subsequently in August 2012, another 31 companies were pre-qualified to bid for the remaining five System Works Packages.
• 20 March 2012 - MRT Corp announced the appointment of MMC Gamuda as the Underground Works Contractor for the MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line. The scope of work for the contract included, amongst others, the construction of seven underground stations and the tunnels for the 9.5 km underground alignment of the line. The contract was valued at RM8.2 billion.
• 1 August 2012 – MRT Corp announced that the project was now in active construction phase.^[34]
• December 2012 – MRT Corp announced that the project cost would not exceed the limit of RM 23 billion, adding that its first MRT line is expected for completion by July 2017.^[35] Meanwhile, Prime Minister Najib Razak revealed that the first phase construction of MRT project can be wrapped up by the end of 2016.^[36]
• 30 May 2013 – Tunnel excavation works for the MRT Sungai Buloh-Kajang Line began with the world's first Variable Density Tunnel Boring Machine. Commencement of tunnelling works was launched by Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak at the Cochrane Launch Shaft.^[37] Subsequently, another seven tunnel boring machines were launched to construct the tunnels for the line.
• 29 June 2014 - The first two train car bodies arrived in Westport, Port Klang, Selangor.^[38] The train will be assembled in the country’s first train assembly plant in Rasa, Hulu Selangor. The purpose built plant for the KVMRT project is solely owned and operated by SMH Rail Sdn Bhd. SMH Rail had a consortium partnership with Siemens AG and Siemens Malaysia. Work to assemble the trains began immediately after the first two train car bodies arrived in Westport. The time taken to assemble one train set is about 30 days. The plant has two assembly lines, allowing work on four trains sets to be carried out at the same time.
• 30 November 2014 - Another 14 train car bodies had arrived.

See also

• Prasarana Malaysia Berhad
  • Rapid Bus Sdn Bhd
    • Rapid KL
    • Rapid Penang
    • Rapid Kuantan
  • Rapid Rail Sdn Bhd
    • Rapid KL
• MRT Corp
  • Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit Project
• MyHSR Corp
  • Kuala Lumpur–Singapore High Speed Rail Project
• Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD)
• Public transport in Kuala Lumpur
• Rail transport in Malaysia

References

1. "MRT". Retrieved 24 April 2015.
2. "NU Sentral Set To Improve Urban Transportation, Says Najib". Bernama. 11 August 2009.
3. "Government goes with Prasarana to operate Sg Buloh-Kajang MRT line". The Malaysian Insider. 16 June 2014.
4. http://www.mymrt.com.my/aboutMRT.html
5. transitmy. "MRT Update: MyRapidTransit launching & public viewing on 8 July 2011 at KL Convention Centre". Malaysian Transit. Retrieved 11 July 2011.
6. Achariam, Noel (30 May 2011). "Proposed TTDI MRT station shifted". New Straits Times. Retrieved 6 June 2011.
7. "Route Map". MRT Corp. Retrieved 22 January 2014.
8. http://www.mymrt.com.my/stations.html
9. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d62grQs_2I4
10. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=J_9QkoLV8FQ#t=207s
11. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=J_9QkoLV8FQ#t=222s
12. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=kXdbG7I7_dQ#t=31s
13. MRT Corp. "MRT CORP AWARDS RM3.474 BILLION WORTH OF CONTRACTS" (PDF). MRT Corp. Retrieved 15 September 2012.
14. Progress Report (PDF). MRT Corp. 2012. p. 13.
15. "Rail Travel Expansion". The Star. 30 August 2006.
16. "Putting The Best Route Forward". The Star. 24 September 2006.
17. "New LRT Lines Approved". The Star. 7 July 2007.
18. "LRT Projects Set For Next Year". The Star. 20 April 2007.
19. "Kota Damansara-Cheras Rail Line Right on Track". The Star. 15 June 2008.
20. "Laluan LRT Bawah Tanah Baru Di KL" (PDF). Utusan. 5 September 2008.
21. "Govt May Invite Tenders For LRT Extension in 3 Months". TheEdgeDaily. 21 May 2009.
22. "RM6-7 billion for LRT extensions". TheEdgeDaily. 14 September 2009.
23. "Additional routes for Cheras-Kota Damansara line". TheEdgeDaily. 9 April 2010.
24. "KL to have MRT system, say sources". The Edge. 7 June 2010.
25. "LRT, MRT, what's next? Bullet Train?". The Edge (OSK). 7 June 2010.
26. "RM30b MRT plan". The New Straits Times. 8 June 2010.
27. "Putrajaya mulls multi-billion rail deals". The Malaysian Insider. 8 June 2010.
28. Loo Foon Fong (18 December 2010). The Star http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/12/18/nation/20101218144937&sec=nation. Missing or empty |title= (help)
29. Loh Foon Fong (19 December 2010). "RM36b MRT project to be broken down to nine parcels for open tender". The Star.
30. Chooi, Clara. "Najib launches MRT project at glitzy do". Malaysian Insider. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
31. "Putrajaya puts MRT under new project owners". Malaysian Insider. 19 August 2011. Retrieved 19 August 2011.
32. "KL shortlists bidders for RM7b rail works". Business Times, New Straits Times. 21 October 2011. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
33. "Klang Bus Stand to cease operations". Star Metro. Retrieved 21 October 2011.
34. "MRT project moves into active construction phase". The Star. 2 August 2012.
35. http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/12/21/business/12488225&sec=business
36. http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v6/newsindex.php?id=919546
37. Syed Umar Ariff (31 May 2013). "MRT project on track, says PM". New Straits Times.
38. MRT Corp. "MRT Newsletter" (PDF). MRT Corp.

External links

• Land Public Transport Commission
• Syarikat Prasarana Negara Berhad
• Rapid KL
• Kuala Lumpur Mass Rapid Transit (KL MRT) Website
• Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transit (KVMRT) Project
• TransitMy
• Kuala Lumpur Rail Transit Journey Planner
• iMetro
• App Store
• MRT tunneling works by MMC-Gamuda