Penang Sky Cab plan not faring well

GEORGE TOWN: Besides the less-than-enthusiastic response from residents, tourism industry players have also voiced their doubts about the proposed Penang Sky Cab project.

“I’m not too sure about this as a tourist attraction. We are told that the state wants to create attractions like homestays, bird watching and visits to fish markets on the mainland.

“But tourism has always been island-centric while Butterworth is more of an industrial and logistics hub,” said Malaysian Association of Hotels Penang chairman Khoo Boo Lim yesterday.

The 3km cable car system linking Penang island and the mainland was announced by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng last Wednesday.

Khoo said the authorities should reconsider the project, especially if it involved state funds which could be put to better use to enhance existing attractions and improve infrastructure that impacts tourism.

Association of Tourism Attractions Penang chairman Ch’ng Huck Theng said the state government should give priority to solving traffic congestion on the island.

“It will boost our image and help spread tourism revenue to Butterworth, but tourism in Penang is being affected by traffic jams,” Ch’ng said.

Penang Tourist Guides Association president Chin Poh Chin felt that the cable car system would spark the interest of locals only at the initial stage.

“Everyone would want to try it once. But foreigners will not be interested. Cable cars are nothing new to them,” she said.

She said foreign tourists – backpackers or those on guided group tours – love the ferry because it was iconic to Penang.

She urged the state government to expedite the plan to set up a cable car system from Penang Hill to Teluk Bahang instead.

It is learnt that the Penang Hill-Teluk Bahang cable car was initially mooted but difficulties arose with the choice of location for the Teluk Bahang station.

Lim, however, was unperturbed by the criticism.

“The Penang Sky Cab is not to replace the MRT or LRT. It is a bonus,” he told a press conference yesterday.

He said the cable car could be completed in 2018 while the MRT and LRT could take up to Year 2030.

Penang Consumer Protection Association president K. Koris Atan said he supported Penang Sky Cab as an alternative transportation mode.