TWO senior engineers have expressed concerns over the project viability of the proposed Mutiara Light Rail Transit (LRT) line, citing acute land shortage on the island and a flawed ridership projection as among their main issues.
Prasarana Malaysia Bhd’s first chief executive officer (CEO) Datuk Ridza Abdoh Salleh took to social media to express his doubts about the LRT, underlining that its present alignment would encounter many hurdles during the construction phase.
The LRT project, which has the full support of both the federal and state governments, has been hit with criticisms since it was first conceptualised by former Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng in 2014.
Now over a decade later with approval to commence earthworks obtained for the special vehicle platform, some quarters from the engineering fraternity continue to express their reservations about it.
Ridza posted that the Penang LRT is facing a major huddle to locate the depot at the "Pesta Pulau Pinang" site in Sg Nibong - a strategic proposed station for the 29km long first phase which snakes from Komtar, George Town to the now under reclamation island - Silicon Island off Batu Maung, near the Penang International Airport in Bayan Lepas.
"The dilemma is not going to stop here. More will come, especially with the alignment, location, and footprint of the stations, substations, parking facility, and access to stations for public and maintenance vehicles, and crew. During construction, access for cranes, launchers, and erectors require space, but at the same time, the public (life) must be uninterrupted," said Ridza, who blogs on public transport alternatives.
"Penang LRT is a project just too big, especially for the island side. Once completed, it will struggle to find passengers to fill the cars from 6 am to midnight. With a 700,000-plus population, where can you find 200,000 to 300,000 ridership daily? If you cannot, the LRT will be operating below cost and will require heavy financial subsidy by the federal government year on year."
The traffic congestion will not disappear easily, said Ridza.
"It may get worse. A lot of spaces are taken up by the LRT system and the station, and the available spaces for buses, cars, motorcycles, and pedestrians will become much less," he said.
Summarising that it is not a viable project, Ridza said that having the power to commission any project is not sufficient.
A white elephant in the making?
"It must come with the commitment to safeguard the society and the public from being exposed to harmful side effects. It looks like a whiter-than-white elephant is about to be manufactured, and it's in progress."
Former Penang chief engineer Lim Thean Heng echoed what Ridza said, stressing that there is a need to upgrade the transport system here with a comprehensive public network but the LRT is not the "game-changer," the state should want or need.
He claimed that the ridership figures were inaccurate, and the project looked "rushed" without due consideration to the present needs of the road users here.
The construction stage may also cause commuters on the island to endure a nightmare experience for at least the next five years, he pointed out.
He also challenged the media to speak to the Institute of Engineers about the project.
From the start of 2013 following the now overlooked Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP) by Halcrow Consultants, a touted civil engineering firm, the LRT project was a "disaster" in the making, said Lim.
Although the project is destined to commence later this year, as the developer - MRT Corp Bhd has finalised the first phase in appointing the contractor, Lim claimed that there was no open - tender practised and it was tendered out to SRS Consortium, who was the initial project delivery partner, said Lim.
Claiming that the Halcrow group is now disbanded, Lim said that the PTMP advocated the concept of "moving people, not vehicles" in the fragile ecology of Penang Island.
SRS Consortium was awarded the first phase of the project, stretching 24 km from Komtar to the Silicon Island of the Penang South Reclamation project.
The contract involves 19 stations and other related facilities.
"This is intended to simplify and expedite the implementation and initial execution of the project,” Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook reportedly said after a signing ceremony for the contract earlier this month.
The contract has a ceiling of RM8.31 billion, Loke noted.
The long overdue project is expected to alleviate severe traffic congestion in Penang Island.
Once the notice to proceed is issued, Gamuda will have six years to complete the contract, according to a statement from the company.
Loh Phoy Yen Holdings Sdn Bhd and Ideal Property Development Sdn Bhd each own 20% of SRS.
MRT Corp is the project developer and asset owner of the Mutiara Line.
The tender for the second phase of the project, which runs from the Macallum in George Town to the Penang Sentral Station in Butterworth, is expected to be called in July.
Overall, the line will feature 21 stations covering a total distance of 29.5km. - January 21, 2025.
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