UPGRADED pedestrian walkway beside Penang Hill’s middle station now offers a safer and comfortable environment for residents and hikers.
Penang Hill Corporation civil engineer Norshazwina Johari, who oversaw the project successfully, said the walkway was upgraded to ensure a smooth traffic flow among users.
“Our main purpose was to enhance the safety aspect of the walkway and to make it more conducive for both the residents and hikers.
“We wanted to tackle the congestion as well as prevent people from getting confused that it is a ‘two-way’ walkway.
“The walkway now has a 20m-long roofing which would act as a rain shelter for the users,” said Norshazwina during a recent interview with Buletin Mutiara.
According to Norshazwina, the upgrading work, which cost around RM40,000, began on Oct 23 last year and was completed on Nov 27 in the same year.
“The work was completed within a month but its designing stage took three months (February 2020 to April 2020).
“This was because we had to conduct a site assessment to find out the condition of the site to plan our work.
“The allocation for the project was from the state government and the commencement of the upgrading work was delayed due to factors, such as the implementation of the movement control order (MCO) back in March 2020,” added Norshazwina.
Norshazwina said the upgrading work involved the widening of the walkway and also the construction of concrete floors on the existing dilapidated walkway.
“The walkway has been expanded from 1.5 metres to 2 metres wide.
“We also have constructed concrete stairs connecting to the upper platform and also the existing platform.
“The work included the installation of the ‘Anti-Climb Fence’ around the platform area to prevent accidents and increase user safety.
“Previously, people used to hang around by sitting beside the track which is absolutely dangerous (funicular train track).
“It also has a designated lane for hikers and cyclists,” she added.
Norshazwina, who specialises in geotechnical engineering, said building of new structures on the existing structure was a real challenge for the walkway project.
“It was a meticulous work as we had to ensure that the pilling work did not hit the existing soil nails. That required a high level of expertise.
“To construct on an uneven surface with slopes was another challenge. So, we decided to build a staircase at the slopes that connects to the concrete platform.
“As it would be dangerous to build platform on a slope,” said Norshazwina.
Norshazwina also added that positive feedback was receive from residents and hikers for enhancing the walkway.
Meanwhile, assistant engineer for the project Ahmad Faisal Ahmad Faziel said to prevent intrusion by humans and animals, netting installation work was also done.
“The works also included the installation of safety signage and netting below the upper station platform which had holes.
“This is to prevent the occurrences of trespassing in that area,” Ahmad Faisal said.
Story by Tanushalini Moroter
Pix by Tanushalini Moroter & courtesy of Penang Hill Corporation