State: Put in ramps

THE Penang Government will appeal to the Transport Ministry to restore three essential road ramps to a flyover project which is part of the Ipoh-Padang Besar electrified double-trekking project.

State Public Works Department (PWD) director Ahmad Latif Abdul Hamid said only one ramp in Jalan Padang Lalang had been approved for the 1.2km-long flyover which stretched over the railway tracks to connect Jalan Nangka with Jalan Perda Timur in Bandar Perda, Bukit Mertajam.

“The three ramps — two in Jalan Permatang Rawa and one in Jalan Kebun Sireh — were removed from the four-lane flyover’s original plan that we submitted due to budget constraint.

“But the state government will appeal through the state Economic Planning Unit to have them reinstated.

“They are vital to help ease traffic flow in the area,” he said after presenting a briefing on the project at the Seberang Prai Municipal Council (MPSP) headquarters in Bandar Perda.

Ahmad said the department would also appeal to the ministry to reinstate the construction of an overhead pedestrian-cum-motorcycle bridge over Jalan Permatang Rawa into the particular project.

Padang Lalang assemblyman Michael Tan Cheong Heng said the flyover project’s original cost of RM230mil had been scaled down to RM130mil, following the exclusion of the three ramps and overhead pedestrian bridge.

“Without the three ramps, the traffic flow in the area, especially to the bustling Bandar Perda Township, might worsen.

“Motorists will have to drive a longer distance to make U-turns at certain stretches without the ramps,” he said.

MPSP president Maimunah Mohd Sharif said construction work on the flyover project was scheduled to begin in July and be completed by August 2014.

She said the project would also see the permanent closure of two roads near a Chinese temple and Kim Fa shopping centre in Taman Sri Rambai due to a 1.5m-height difference between the roads and the flyover.

“Before beginning piling work on the project site, we will do a trial run by temporarily diverting traffic to observe the traffic flow in the area.

“We have briefed the community leaders on the project and explained to them the reason for taking away the ramps,” she said.