* By Bernama *

Despite already having two bridges connecting Penang Island and Seberang Perai, the DAP-led state government is pushing for a third bridge, and now waiting for the federal government’s approval to build it.

The state government’s initial proposal was to build an undersea tunnel linking Gurney Drive and Bagan Ajam on the mainland with three main expressways with an estimated cost of RM6.341 billion.

With the undersea tunnel receiving a lot of ‘not so good’ feedback from the public, Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng then proposed to replace it with a third bridge and challenged the federal government to approve the project as he planned to make it toll-free.

With the population in Penang Island and Seberang Perai at about 1.6 million people, experts questioned the necessity for a third bridge.

A former lecturer in town and regional planning at the School of Housing, Building and Planning, Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), Associate Professor Dr Hassim Mat said roads on Penang Island were already very congested, especially during peak hours, and that traffic policemen had to be stationed at various locations to ease traffic flow.

He said the third bridge would only bring in more vehicles to Tanjung Tokong, Tanjung Bungah, Batu Ferringhi, Pulau Tikus and Gurney Drive, and thus cause more congestion.

“Why bring more traffic to the already congested roads on Penang Island. A more logical move is to resolve the problems of traffic congestion here first.

“I am not against the (proposed) plan but as of now, I do not think another bridge will help to ease the traffic situation in Penang Island, but it will only worsen traffic congestion on the island as there will be an increase in the number of vehicles on the road,” he told Bernama in an exclusive interview.

Hassim said what Penang needed was a proper urban planning and traffic management system, not a third bridge that would result in more traffic chaos.

Penang’s second bridge, Jambatan Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah (JSAHMS), was opened in 2014 and reported to be under-utilised, recording an average of only 14,300 vehicles daily.

Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd (JKSB) acting Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer Mohd Ashari Alias said the target set by the company was a daily average of 25,000 vehicles after five years of operation.

He said the number of vehicles using JSAHMS would be lesser if another bridge was to be built to link Penang.

The proposed construction of a third bridge is believed will also affect the ferry service linking the island and mainland.

Penang Port Sdn Bhd chief operating officer V. Sasedharan said less people were now using the ferry service with the opening of the second Penang bridge.

“The number of ferry passengers will further drop if the third bridge project is allowed to go on,” he added.

Source: Bernama

The proposed cable car system for Penang, which is part of the ambitious RM27bil Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), has been rejected by the Federal Government.

Transport Minister Datuk Seri Liow Tiong Lai said the state government has been informed of the decision.

He said the decision was made as the proposed project would affect the passage of vessels operating at the North Butterworth Container Terminal (NBCT).

“We might consider if the state government is willing to change the alignment, which is also subject to several conditions set by the Marine Department,” Liow told reporters yesterday after attending a briefing by the Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) at Swettenham Pier.

He said the proposed undersea tunnel project also needed to be looked into as it could affect the seabed or the passageway of the ships plying the northern region route.

“The Federal Government is also interested to know more about the tunnel project but to date, the state government has not provided any details,” said Liow.

It was reported that the proposed cable car system spanning the Penang channel, will cross the Middle Bank to mainland. It was expected to be completed between 2018 and 2019.

Liow also said 14 companies are planning to bring their cruise ships this year into Penang and tourists arrivals here could increase from 221,000 to 238,000.

“Although we lost Star Cruise, we have managed to bring in more such ships, which is good for tourism and the economy,” he said.

On the 3.4ha land dispute between PPSB and the state government, which had been earmarked for expansion at the Swettenham Pier, Liow said it was time the state government stopped playing politics for the sake of the Penang people.

“The 3.4ha land for the expansion of PPSB and the land for the expansion of the Tanjung Marina must be resolved as we cannot continue this indefinitely,” he added.

As for the business development of PPSB’s container traffic, Liow said there should be at least 8% growth of container traffic handled by the port.

“PPSB handled 1.3 million twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEUs) in 2015 and the figure is expected to increase to at least 1.45 million TEUs this year,” he said.

Liow, however, said the bottleneck at the Padang Besar train station, which serves as the inland port to bring in more containers via trains from Thailand, could affect the figure.

“The Federal Government is planning a detailed expansion of the Padang Besar railway station and inland port to bring in containers on train from Thailand to the Penang Port,” he added.

On the oil spill on Friday at the Prai Bulk Terminal, Liow said the Marine Department was working closely with the Department of Environment (DOE) and PPSB to identify the source of the spill and take the necessary action.

Source: TheStar.com.my

An upcoming affordable housing development in Penang mainland by Excel Focus Properties Sdn. Bhd. Strategically located within the established township of Seberang Jaya, only about 500 meters away from Butterworth-Kulim Expressway. Neighboring communities include Taman Naluri, Taman Naluri Ria and Taman Janggus Jaya.

The proposed development will offers 2 blocks of 34-storey condominium with 1,017 affordable units.

This project is still pending for approval. Details to be available upon project launch.

• Eligibility and the requirement of buying affordable housing
• Full list of affordable housing in Penang

Project Name : (to be confirmed)
Location : Seberang Jaya, Penang
Property Type : Affordable housing
Total Units: 1,017
Built-up Area: (to be confirmed)
Indicative Price: Below RM250,000
Developer : Excel Focus Properties Sdn. Bhd.

Location Map:

The Penang Is­­land City Council (MBPP) is going ahead with the road widening pro­ject in Jalan Masjid Negeri, requiring 16 trees to be transplanted elsewhere by end of next month.

Its traffic engineer Zainuddin Mohamad Shariff said the contractor assigned to transplant the trees had been asked to file the method of statement before any transplanting could commence.

“The statement will explain the method to be taken when transplanting the trees.

“It will then be reviewed by the Forest Research Institute Malay­sia and the project should start next month,” he said.

MBPP arborist Azizul Fahmi Muhamad said the trees would be relocated to a nearby residential area off Jalan Masjid Negeri.

It was reported that the construction cost for the 1.8km road widening project along Jalan Mas­jid Negeri is RM7.85mil and the land acquisition cost RM11mil.

The project will involve the Jalan Scotland-bound stretch start­­ing from the Lorong Batu Lanchang-Jalan Masjid Negeri junction to the Ja­­­lan Air Itam-Jalan Masjid Negeri junction.

Source: TheStar.com.my

In Malaysia, there are an overwhelming number of new home owners. According to the survey, among the top 5 reasons on why people invest in properties are to get higher yields on rentals (56%), for good capital appreciation (55%), for retirement planning (46%), for a better environment (46%) and to own a house due to affordable pricing (36%).

Amongst home buyers, location is the most important criteria when considering a home and Klang Valley is becoming the most favoured place to own a home. Almost 55% of the participant already living in the area, with 70% of the participants are looking forward to acquire properties there.

Excessive pricing of properties is the number one deterrent for purchasing property in Malaysia amongst potential buyers. Besides that poor economic performance, the rapid increase of property prices, unpredictable real estate market and touch approval process of bank loan applications are holding back buyers to purchase a property.

There has also been a steady decline in the “overseas property sentiments” and increased interest for commercial properties.

Infographic by PropertyGuru.com.my