Birth of the Trans-Sarawakian Railway

Recently the Borneo Post newspaper reported that a railway would be constructed in Sarawak for the SCORE project. Sarawak is sorely in need of better transport infrastructure, especially with the state's aim of becoming an industrial powerhouse in the 21st century. The benefits of railway transportation include the cheap transportation of bulk goods over long distances ( ideal since Sarawak is a large state), its capability of transporting huge loads at a time, immunity from traffic jams and it's relative predictability when compared to road transport (considering that the current road infastrutcure here is not something to be desired).

Even though the railway project will mostly be concentrated in the central region of Sarawak, where the SCORE project is situated, it was mentioned that the development of the railway would go on "beyond the year 2020". Could this mean the construction of a Trans-Sarawakian railway linking Kuching in the South to Miri in the North? The planned railway thus far is said to be 320km long, but who knows how long the actual railway could be. In an era of rising costs of fossil fuels, the possibility of a Trans-Sarawakian railway certainly seems plausible.

SCORE one for Sarawak!

Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy (SCORE) is one of the many regional development corridors in Malaysia, and is being pioneered currently by the Sarawakian government, specifically by the newly created RECODA (Regional Corridor Development Authority). As a Sarawakian myself, I cannot help but feel proud that this plan aims to bring my beloved state into an industrialized and first-world style state by 2030.

The core industries that are prioritized for development are as follows:

1. Oil-based industry
2. Aluminium industry
3. Timber-based industry
   
4. Steel industry
5. Palm-oil industry
6. Tourism industry
7. Livestock industry
8. Aquaculture industry
9. Marine Engineering industry
10. Glass-manufacturing industry

The 3 main advantages cited for SCORE's success are the availability of large swathes of land for development ( Sarawak being the largest state in Malaysia, covering about 40% of Malaysia's total land area), cheap and abundant hydro, coal-based and natural gas-based energy sources, and Sarawak's strategic location between the economic behemoths of North Asia ( including China) and India, as well as Australia to the south.

SCORE's area of development is focused upon Sarawak's central region, itself divided into three main areas, north, central and south. These areas have been designated as 'growth nodes' and are as follows:

• Similajau - Heavy Industry Centre (Northern Node)
• Mukah - Smart City and Central Nerve Centre (Central Node)
• Tanjung Manis - Industrial Port City (Southern Node)
  

I sincerely hope that this plan will eventually work out and bring much needed development and prosperity to Sarawak. Some people may be pessimistic of the prospects, even the plausibility, of such a grand scale project, but as with all great undertakings, the first step is to believe in the lie, the so called 'vision', and only then, after much determination and hardwork, will the 'vision' eventually materialize itself into reality. I call upon all Sarawakians, as their patriotic duty, to wholly and fully support this plan that it may come to fruition and pave the way for a glorious future for Sarawak and it's people.