KOTA KINABALU: Chief Minister Datuk Seri Panglima Haji Hajiji Haji Noor said the  proposed Trans Borneo Railway project linking Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei and  Kalimantan, Indonesia will be a boon to the Borneo region. 

“Once materialised, the project will be impactful to enhance people-to-people  connectivity and economically, it will facilitate trade, promote growth of industries at the  border areas and boost tourism in the Borneo region,," he said. 

Last November, Federal Works Minister Datuk Seri Alexander Nanta Linggi said his  ministry had received a preliminary proposal on this Trans-Borneo Railway Project. 

Nanta said the idea for this mega-railway linking Sarawak and Sabah and eventually to  connect to Kalimantan came from the Transport Ministry and the Federal government  had approved a financial allocation specifically to carry out a feasibility ground study on  the Trans-Borneo Railway routes involving the Sarawak-Sabah side.  

Brunei-based Brunergy Utama Sdn Bhd announced it would be embarking on the Trans  Borneo Railway project, which it proposed to be implemented in two phases involving  routes spanning 1,620 kilometres. 

The first phase will connect cities from the West to the East coast, beginning in  Pontianak, West Kalimantan, and ending in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah while the second  phase will involve North and East Kalimantan connecting the main route with Samarinda  and to the new capital of Indonesia, Nusantara. 

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