A light rail transit (LRT) project has yet to be approved in Penang as the state government is still evaluating the six packages submitted by bidders for the Penang Master Transport Plan, a state executive councillor said today.

Local government and traffic management committee chairman Chow Kon Yeow refuted local daily The Star’s report today that quoted anonymous sources as saying construction of a 17.5km elevated LRT project is slotted to start next year.

“The newspaper quoted “reliable sources” which is not so reliable because we have not awarded the Master Transport Plan project to any bidder yet,” Chow said in a press conference today.

The Penang Transport Master Plan is a massive RM27 billion comprehensive plan designed to resolve traffic congestion woes on the island.

The plan includes suggestions for a more comprehensive public transportation system that includes the LRT, public buses, trams, the undersea tunnel connecting the island to the mainland and expansion of major road.

Chow said all the bidders have proposed different transportation system packages, some with a combination of LRT, trams and buses.

“We can’t give out any details for this yet because we have not shortlisted the bidder so it could be any of the proposed packages,” he said.

The Request for Proposal for the massive project closed on February 16 and the state is still studying the proposals by six bidders.

“We have four months to evaluate the proposals, to go through the financial and technical aspects, before awarding the project,” he said.

The earliest date the state could expect to shortlist the bidders will be in early May for a second round of evaluations.

Chow said it could take Penang up to seven months to award the project to the successful bidder from the closing date.

He also refuted The Star report that claimed the successful bidder will get to reclaim about 566ha of land in Seberang Prai.

“This is mere speculation by the newspaper because we have not made any decisions on the project,” he said.

Source: TheMalayMailOnline.com