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Quick clearance will make shuttling between cities a breeze

PUTRAJAYA — Whether one is headed straight to Kuala Lumpur on a business trip, or making stops within Malaysia as part of a holiday, he or she would only need to clear customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) checks once — at the point of departure in Singapore.

Apart from the 90-minute express service between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, there will also be a domestic service that will make stops at six transit stations, including Putrajaya. Photo: Jason Quah/TODAY

Apart from the 90-minute express service between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, there will also be a domestic service that will make stops at six transit stations, including Putrajaya. Photo: Jason Quah/TODAY

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PUTRAJAYA — Whether one is headed straight to Kuala Lumpur on a business trip, or making stops within Malaysia as part of a holiday, he or she would only need to clear customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) checks once — at the point of departure in Singapore.

The reverse is the same for those making their way to Singapore from Malaysia — they will clear customs in Kuala Lumpur, or in Iskandar Puteri. 

This will be made possible when three joint CIQ complexes are built one each in Singapore, Iskandar Puteri and Kuala Lumpur to allow for seamless travel on the high-speed rail (HSR) link, which is slated to begin services in 2026. 

The trains will run at a top speed of more than 300kmh. Apart from the 90-minute express service between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, there will also be a domestic service that will make stops at six transit stations: Putrajaya, Seremban, Ayer Keroh, Muar, Batu Pahat and Iskandar Puteri, the authorities revealed on Tuesday (July 19) following the signing of a memorandum of understanding on the HSR in Putrajaya. 

A third shuttle service will run between Singapore and Iskandar Puteri. The express and shuttle services will be run by an international operator, while a second operator will manage the domestic service within Malaysia, with no involvement from Singapore. In terms of operations and scheduling, the express service would have priority. 

The HSR terminus in Singapore will be in Jurong East, and most of the line on the Singapore side is expected to be underground. In Malaysia, the terminus will be in a new township called Bandar Malaysia, a few kilometres away from the Kuala Lumpur city centre. It is set to be a mixed-use development, with a commercial district, housing, and tourist attractions.

All stations will be designed to integrate with local public transport systems to ensure seamless connectivity, said Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Commission and Singapore’s Land Transport Authority in a joint statement on Tuesday. 

The entire customs clearance process for passengers is expected to be shorter than if they were to take a flight. In other cities where high-speed rail services are available, such as the Eurostar shuttling between London and Paris, passengers are typically required to arrive at the train station no later than 30 minutes prior to departure, for both immigration and security checks.

Fares for the international service are yet to be determined. In Taiwan, a ticket on the high-speed rail service between Taipei and Kaohsiung — at a similar distance of 345km — goes for about NT$1,500 (S$63).

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Malaysian Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Mr Abdul Rahman Dahlan, when asked about fare affordability, said: “I think it will be a benchmark against the next best thing, which is airfare.”

When asked to comment on rumours that there will be one more transit station, he said: “It will be in the bilateral agreement. We’ll try to get as much as possible, the best deal, out of this project. Because the length of the tracks will be longer in Malaysia, so we need more stations.”

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