2011 airports' passenger traffic up 10.6pc

PUTRAJAYA: Passenger traffic at the country's airports last year rose
10.63 per cent to 65.343 million passengers, from 59.065 million
passengers in 2010.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Kong Cho Ha
said the increase was the second consecutive double-digit annual growth,
with the 2010 figure 12 per cent over that of 2009.

He said the
country's security and stability contributed to last year's good
performance, which surpassed the ministry's target of 62 million
passengers.

The growth was also encouraging as it came amid
economic uncertainty in Europe and the United States in the last few
years, he said.

"It shows the country was growing quite well and on the right track," he told reporters at his office here today.

Kong
said the ministry targets passenger traffic to grow only five per cent
this year amid the global economic uncertainty, especially in Europe and
America.

He said last year, international passenger traffic
grew 10.03 per cent to 30.89 million passengers, from 28.007 million in
2010, while domestic passenger traffic rose 10.9 per cent to 34.454
million, from 31.056 million.

Last year the Kuala Lumpur
International Airport (KLIA) handled 37.700 million passengers, followed
by the airports of Kota Kinabalu (5.809 million), Penang (4.6 million)
and Kuching (4.287 million).

Other airports handling over a
million passengers were Miri (1.857 million), Langkawi (1.504 million),
Johor Baharu (1.338 million), Sibu (1.133 million), Kota Baharu (1.132
million) and Subang (1.320 million).

On PJ Utara MP Tony Pua's
allegation in a news portal today that the construction cost of the West
Coast Expressway had escalated from its original estimate of RM3.015
billion, Kong said the project was planned a long time ago.

Kong
said the expressway was long overdue and it was very important to
implement the project immediately in order to stimulate the economies of
the states involved, adding if it was not implemented now, the cost
would escalate further in future. - Bernama