News #193: The proposed Melaka tram system

Hello from Chiang Mai. I’m wrapping up my time here for 2023 and I head to Bangkok next. I will be there for a month and doing some meetups while I am there.

The weekly newsletter will be business as usual over the holiday period, and the News Extra section for paid subscribers will resume in January.

This week’s article is about a new tram proposal for Melaka. There have been other proposals in the past, so we shall see how this one goes. The proposal is from a private company, and they already have a website with a map.

Future Southeast Asia Meetups

I’m considering some informal Future Southeast Asia Meetups for 2024. It would be an evening meeting where fellow readers can talk about transport and urban development in Southeast Asia. The most likely places would be Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, KL, and Singapore. If you can go to those places and would like to attend, leave a comment or reply to this email. I would like to get a feel for how many people would be interested.

Latest posts at Future Southeast Asia

• Melaka Tram: A proposed 3-line tramway system for the historic port city of Malaysia

The Melaka City Tramway System is a proposed tram system for Melaka by private company Metro Trem SDN BHD.

News

• The Commemorative Summit for the 50th Year of ASEAN-Japan Friendship and Cooperation

• Japan is a cuddlier friend to South-East Asia than America or China

“Relations between Japan and ASEAN are entering a new era.”

🇰🇭 Cambodia

• Vietnam assured of canal’s environmental neutrality

“During his first official visit to Vietnam on December 11-12, Prime Minister Hun Manet assured the Vietnamese side that the Funan Techo Canal project would pose no harm to the environment or the Mekong River’s flow.”

• Manet secures ‘notable’ MoUs during Japan trip

🇮🇩 Indonesia

• Indonesia secures Japan's backing for Jakarta MRT expansion

• Jokowi issues presidential decree for Rempang Eco-City

• Transportation ministry talks of LRT Bali project with South Korea

• Indonesia's new train offers chance to improve views of China

• Revitalization of five stations for the Surabaya Regional Railway Line

“The Surabaya Regional Railway Line mass transportation or the Surabaya-Sidoarjo electric rail train is expected to operate as early as 2029.”

🇱🇦 Laos

• ADB greenlights dual funding initiatives for sustainable urban development in Luang Prabang

• High-speed rail linking Nong Khai, Vientiane expected to complete in 2028

• Booyoung Group donates 600 buses to improve public transport

🇲🇾 Malaysia

• MyHSR Corp to request for proposals for HSR project after Jan 15, 2024

• As Malaysia’s next king takes up Singapore high-speed rail cause, is it a case of too costly, too late?

• With RTS being built, Singaporeans buy Johor units as property gets pricier in home country

• Silicon Island: is the man-made Penang island becoming the next “Forest City”?

• Chamber favours Tuaran as site for new Kota Kinabalu airport

• Anthony Loke: Govt to continue providing subsidies for rural air service in Sabah, Sarawak 

🇵🇭 Philippines

• PH to build one of world’s longest marine bridges

• Gadon warns vs rushed NAIA rehab project

• Tagum-Davao-Digos segment of railway project to be deliberated again

• CDO mayor orders clearing of creeks, rivers

“CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Mayor Rolando Uy on Monday ordered village officials here to take the initiative in clearing their rivers and creeks of settlers to avoid any deaths that may occur in case of flooding.”

🇸🇬 Singapore

• On the right track: How the JB-Singapore RTS Link is taking shape

• ‘Bike village’ to be launched at Punggol MRT station by end-2024

• Time’s ripe to revamp COE system, start charging more for road use, say panellists at ST roundtable

🇹🇭 Thailand

• Three-airport rail contract being revised 

“CP-led consortium seeks changes to payment terms because of impact of pandemic”

• Crying need for holistic development to make Bangkok liveable

• Thailand's 'Landbridge' will bring East and West closer together

• Phuket continues push for EV buses

“Phuket officials have submitted a formal request to roll out a system of electric buses to serve people travelling to and from the airport while waiting for the ‘light rail’ project to become a reality.”

• New Beach Road obstacle course sidewalk in Pattaya, via @thepattayanews.

🇻🇳 Vietnam

• Viet Nam seeks Japan's ODA for North-South high-speed railway project

• Ministry to start construction on two priority sections of north-south high speed railway before 2030

• Without policy changes, 200 km of metro will take 100 years: HCMC leader

• Noi Bai Airport's international terminal to be expanded

• Late to the party: Vietnam and the Belt and Road Initiative

“Chinese-funded investments into Laos and Cambodia have transformed the geo-economic landscape in Vietnam’s immediate neighbourhood. This has caused Hanoi to give China’s Belt and Road Initiative another look.”

• Once-lively coastal resorts turn ghost towns in central Vietnam

• Phu Quoc to get coastal road to access public beaches