INFRASTRUCTURE
The Seri Saujana bridge in Putrajaya has two three-lane carriageways. The bridge has an overall single span of 300 metres and a total width of 32 metres.
Malaysia has a good network of roads and railways, telecommunications, electricity, water supply and sewerage. Within the Peninsula itself, the west coast has a more developed infrastructure than the east coast.
In line with the National Vision Policy (2001–10) of building a resilient and competitive nation, the emphasis of the Ninth Malaysia Plan (2006–10) is on increasing infrastructure and accessibility in less developed areas, while the focus in urban areas is to improve public transportation.
While the government traditionally shouldered the responsibility of providing the nation’s infrastructure, since the early 1980s this burden has been progressively handed over to the private sector.
Elements of Malaysia’s transport network that have been privatized include the North–South Expressway, the Kuala Lumpur Light Rail Transit (LRT) system and the monorail. Of Malaysia’s federal and state ports, seven are privatized. The country’s 39 civilian airports are operated by Malaysia Airports Berhad, which was corporatized in 1992. Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTM) was also corporatized in 1992 under the Railways Act 1991. The Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) is at the centre of a major infrastructure development programme which aims to make it the aviation hub of the Asia Pacific region. The airport is designed to handle a maximum of 60 million passengers per annum and cargo traffic of three million tonnes per annum by the year 2020.
Most utilities have been privatized, but the government still concerns itself with making sure that the public is served with safe, reliable and affordable supplies of electricity and piped water. The Federal Government administers the water supply, but the treatment of sewage from residential areas in Peninsular Malaysia has been privatized. Power production and supply used to be the sole monopoly of the National Electricity Board (NEB) in Peninsular Malaysia, the Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) and the Sarawak Electricity Supply Corporation. The NEB was privatized in May 1992 and renamed Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB). Although TNB retains its monopoly over transmission and distribution services, several Independent Power Producers (IPPs) have been granted licences to build and operate power plants for the generation and sale of electricity to TNB and large industrial consumers.
A modern telecommunications system is integral to the growth of the industrial and services sectors. TM (formerly Telekom Malaysia) Berhad is the main supplier of telecommunications services. In terms of postal services, Pos Malaysia Berhad, since its privatization, has acted with market-driven and profit-focused goals, while continuing to fulfil its social obligations.