CHIEF Minister Chow Kon Yeow announced today that Penang Sentral is set to be part of the proposed Penang Light Rail Transit (LRT) project, making it one of the major alignments under the estimated RM10 billion project.
Penang Sentral is the main transportation hub for the state of Penang, as well as the northern area of Peninsular Malaysia.
While adjustments in the alignments are more likely to happen, just like how the line from Bayan Lepas will be extended to Tanjong Bungah instead of ending in Komtar, the railway scheme, as discussed and agreed principally by the Federal Government, remains unchanged for now.
The Bayan Lepas – Tanjong Bungah alignment falls under Phase One.
“We were informed that by sticking with the initial proposed scheme, the project can very likely kickstart faster, and if it happens otherwise, new and thorough research needs to be done again,” Chow said after attending the DAP Chinese New Year Open House in Bukit Mertajam earlier.
Based on previous reports, it is learnt that the proposed LRT route is expected to cover Bayan Lepas-Komtar-Tanjung Bungah-Air Itam-Butterworth-Kepala Batas-Simpang Ampat.
With the latest announcement of Penang Sentral being part of the project, Chow is optimistic that the proposed cross-channel link, connecting the island and mainland, will be a reality under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim’s watch.
He also said the proposed line connecting the island and the mainland would be through an elevated railway.
Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim on May 6, 2023, broke the good news that the Federal Government had principally agreed to fund Penang’s first LRT project.
MRT Corp (Mass Rapid Transit Corporation) is the project manager.
In a related development, Chow said a delegation from MRT Corp was in Penang a few weeks ago to provide an update on their latest efforts about the LRT project.
“They informed us that the next step is to present a Cabinet paper with comprehensive details about the project to the relevant ministries, namely the Transport and Finance Ministries.
“The Cabinet paper will encompass details such as the depots and their locations, the proposed alignments, and many other technical studies that were discussed between the state government and MRT Corp,” Chow added.
Earlier, thousands of visitors thronged the Ng Yam Huat Hall in Bukit Mertajam for DAP’s annual CNY Open House celebration.
This was the first time DAP was organising a CNY Open House as a unity government that was formed by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim last year.
The event was graced by the attendance of DAP veteran Tan Sri Lim Kit Siang, DAP national chairman Lim Guan Eng, Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong, Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying, Penang Deputy Chief Minister II Jagdeep Singh Deo, DAP Penang vice-chairman Zairil Khir Johari and others.
Meanwhile, there were also leaders of PKR, represented by Fahmi Zainol, who is also state Agrotechnology, Food Security and Cooperative Development Committee chairman, and Penang Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Musa Sheikh Fadzir.
On the issue of the current hot spell, especially involving the north Seberang Perai and central Seberang Perai districts, Chow said the state government was monitoring the matter with relevant authorities.
When asked by a reporter about a potential cloud seeding exercise, Chow said the process requires a lot of criteria that must be fulfilled, and that the state government is already in touch with the National Water Services Commission (SPAN).
Story by Kevin Vimal
Pix by Ahmad Adil Muhammad
Video by Darwina Mohd Daud