Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Integrated transport system should be looked at first, says PHT


GEORGE TOWN: An integrated public transport system should be put in place first before the implementation of the RM8bil infrastructure package unveiled by the Penang Government.
Penang Heritage Trust (PHT) president Khoo Salma Nasution said the state should look at it in order to ensure sustainability of the environment and also the heritage sites of George Town.
“An integrated public transport system should be looked at first rather than create an infrastructure that will bring more cars to the island, which has a fragile ecology and impact it.
“We hope for a long-term vision for the future of Penang and the planet,” Salma said here yester-day.
The infrastructure package comprises the 6.5km Gurney Drive-Bagan Ajam undersea tunnel, a 4.2km Gurney Drive-Lebuhraya Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu bypass, a 4.6km Lebuhraya Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu-BandarBaru Air Itam bypass and a 12km road connecting Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng had been quoted on online news portals as saying that the state executive council had decided to award a company a contract to construct the four roads.
Although Lim did not name the company, it is known that the package of projects will begin in 2015.
Malaysian Nature Society Penang branch adviser D. Kanda Kumar had said the proposed undersea tunnel linking the island to the mainland is redundant.
Penang Consumer Protection Association president K. Koris Atan, however, said he was in full support of the projects. - The Star

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