WITH tourism now slowly bouncing back, a Penang hotel is striving to revive trishaw rides for visitors as one of the best ways to explore the George Town Unesco World Heritage Site.
M Summit 191 Executive Hotel Suites today launched its Penang on 3 Wheels (P3W) trishaw ride at its premises in Magazine Road.
M Summit Group managing director Datuk Albert Moh said they have two main objectives for launching the event.
“We want to promote the charming heritage attractions, wall murals and traditional trades in George Town.
“And we also want to help support the livelihood of ageing trishaw riders, especially after they were badly hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has taught us one thing – we are stronger together than we are alone. Effective partnerships have been forged between firms, groups and communities.
“We are doing the same with this group of ageing trishaw pedallers, with the invaluable help of Priscilla Ho under her Ride of Hope programme.
“To help support our senior uncles on a regular basis, we are tying up the P3W trishaw tour with our Stay & Ride package.
“We hope that the package will be a success as every customer is actually contributing to the uncles’ livelihood,” Albert said in his speech at the launching ceremony held at The Skye Event Space, a stunning floral sanctuary located on the 20th floor of Menara M Summit.
Recalling his days as a young boy, Albert said trishaws used to be a popular mode of public transportation.
“My cousin and I went to school together by trishaw. My mother also used to take trishaw from Carnarvon Street where we stayed to Campbell Street for her shopping.
“Trishaw is a living heritage here and I hope with this P3W initiative, more tourists will enjoy their stay in Penang,” he added.
Also present were state Tourism and Creative Economy Committee (Petace) chairman Yeoh Soon Hin, M Summit Group director Datin Jennifer Ong, M Summit 191 Executive Suites general manager Moh Wei Ken and M Summit Group corporate communications manager Ng Su-Ann.
Yeoh said the hotel should be lauded for this worthy effort to promote George Town’s heritage treasures while enabling our trishaw uncles to make ends meet.
He added that the state government would continue to give a monthly aid of RM200 to every trishaw pedallers by continuing to bank in the money to them.
He said it started off with government officials going to Beach Street to distribute RM30 cash aid weekly to the trishaw pedallers before they got the riders to open individual bank accounts so that the state government could electronically transfer RM100 each month to them.
Last July, the state government increased the aid from RM100 to RM200 per month.
Yeoh also said the state government, through George Town World Heritage Incorporated, has helped the trishaw riders refurbish their vehicles too.
“Our rakyat’s welfare has always been close to the Penang government’s heart. Among the many economic casualties of the pandemic are trishaw riders,” Yeoh said in his speech.
“To help ease their burden, Petace has launched many aid packages for them with the collaboration of NGOs. These packages include vaccination programme, free health checks and renewal of licences.
“For Penangites who have taken trishaw rides in their younger days, this will be nostalgic for them. And for those who have not, it will be a novel experience to explore George Town on three wheels!”
Albert (second from left), Group director Jennifer Ong and Wei Ken showing a wall mural of a squatting porridge stall at the Summit 191 Executive Hotel Suites’ Heritage Lane.
After the launch, Albert showed reporters three wall murals depicting the squatting porridge stall, star coffee stall and trams in George Town along the hotel’s newly unveiled Heritage Lane. Painted by M Summit staff, the murals highlight the city’s traditional trades and old Penang.
Wei Ken said the trishaw ride is the hotel’s way of promoting living heritage in Penang.
“With the reopening of international borders, we want foreign guests to explore George Town like how the locals did in the old days … on three wheels.
“P3W offers a two-hour leisurely ride that takes guests around the beautiful enclave of the George Town Unesco World Heritage Site.
“For RM388 only, the guests get to enjoy a 2D/1N stay at a hotel suite, a complimentary honeymoon setup, a complimentary bottle of sparkling juice, a two-hour ‘chaffeured’ tour on a trishaw around George Town for 2 pax and a free room upgrade,” Wei Ken said.
Yeoh and Albert later flagged off the trishaw ride for staff members and media friends.
The highlights of the trishaw tour include Ernest Zacharevic’s famous ‘Kids on Bicycle’ and ‘Boy on a Chair’ murals, Chew Jetty, Sia Boey Urban Archaeological Park, Acheen Street Mosque, Cheah Kongsi Temple, Armenian Street, Dr Sun Yat-Sen Museum, Malaysia’s oldest fire station in Beach Street and Khoo Kongsi Temple.
There was a brief stop for the passengers to visit some quaint shops and take pictures of wall murals and the traditional houses and buildings along the narrow alleys.
This also gave the opportunity for the trishaw riders to rest their legs before continuing the ride back to the hotel.
Ibrahim is hoping for more international tourists to visit Penang.
Ibrahim Mohamed Sultan, one of the trishaw riders, said he was thankful to the hotel and state government for the P3W initiative.
“Penang is still not having many international tourists yet. I appreciate all the help given by the hotel and state government. I hope more hotels will do the same.
“Hopefully, cruise ships and more international flights will start coming to Penang,” said 50-year-old Ibrahim, who has been riding trishaw for 17 years.
Ibrahim is arguably the youngest of the trishaw riders, most of whom are in their late 60s and early 70s.
Story by K.H. Ong
Pix by Joanne Foong and courtesy of M Summit Group