Good news, Penangites, it looks like Penang would be getting its own light rail transit (LRT) soon! The Transport Minister announced that the Bayan Lepas LRT has been given conditional approval, reported The Star.
Source: Railway Technology
The construction of this LRT system is an effort to reduce traffic jams and spark the next surge of growth for the state. The LRT line is approved to be 29.9km long and it would benefit the locals, tourists and investors, according to Datuk Dr Ooi Eng Hock, the chairman of Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers Penang.
The Minister of Transport, Anthony Loke, said in a statement that approval would only be given after a comprehensive study was done on the application by Penang Economic Planning Unit (BPEN) to develop the Bayan Lepas LRT project.
Hence, the approval was given on Tuesday (16 July) with 30 conditions for the state to abide by.
One of the conditions requires a full environmental impact assessment (DEIA) compliance which includes traffic, social and heritage evaluation.
Loke added that the state is required to display documents on the project for three months. The final confirmation to continue with the project will only be given after judging the public responses.
Public participation from the locals, NGOs and all stakeholders are very much encouraged in this public review.
The related documents would be displayed in public areas which include government offices. Furthermore, the state government must upload copies of the relevant documents on a website for online viewing.
The Chief Minister of Penang, Chow Kon Yeow affirmed that the state is dedicated to meet all the requirements.
Now, the most important question. How much does it cost?
The Bayan Lepas LRT costs a whopping RM8.4 billion and the entire Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) costs RM46 billion. The plan includes the LRT, monorail, cable cars and even water taxis.
The LRT is expected to start its journey at Komtar (northeast of the Penang) and travel south through Jelutong, Gelugor, Bayan Lepas and Penang International Airport. The journey will end at the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) development.
Source: The Star
How exciting would it be to travel through Penang by the LRT soon? What do you think about this plan?
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