BUKIT MERTAJAM: Penang’s upcoming Light Rail Transit (LRT) project may see one of its lines connecting the island and the mainland in the form of a rail bridge, said Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
He said the 29km link, an extension from its initial end at Komtar, would cross the North Channel to reach Penang Sentral, an integrated transport terminal in Butterworth, which is also adjacent to the Keretapi Tanah Melayu Butterworth station.
“It will be a short, straight line from Komtar to Penang Sentral.
“The passing of ships in the sea and other technical issues would be taken into consideration,” he told reporters yesterday.
Previously, an undersea tunnel to link the two stations was proposed.
Chow added that the RM10bil project, managed by Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp), is pending a Cabinet presentation and approval by relevant ministries.
“In a recent meeting here, MRT Corp informed us that the subsequent action is the presentation of a Cabinet paper to get the green light from the ministers for the next action.
“As discussions have been held before, MRT Corp has appointed a consultant engineer to study the alignment completed by SRS Consortium, the state’s project delivery partner.
“In a meeting last month, they gave the final word on their reaction to the alignment that we have proposed, including locations of depots I believe would be included in the Cabinet paper.
“We were informed that if we use the LRT line scheme that has been approved, the project can be expedited. Or else, it may require new studies,” said Chow.
In May, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the Federal Government would set aside allocation for Penang’s first LRT.
In his Budget 2024 speech, he announced that the LRT system connecting the island and the mainland will be constructed under a private-public partnership model.
Earlier, Chow, who was present at the Penang DAP Chinese New Year open house here, thanked the people for giving the current Unity government the mandate.
Among others at the open house were DAP veteran Tan Sri Lim Kit Siang, DAP chairman Lim Guan Eng, Penang Barisan Nasional chairman Datuk Musa Sheikh Fadzir and Penang Chinese Chamber of Commerce president Datuk Seri Hong Yeam Wah.
