KUALA LUMPUR – Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow is urging the Transport Ministry to ensure that the state’s iconic ferry service is maintained and not replaced by proposed catamarans.
Speaking in the Dewan Rakyat yesterday, Chow, who is also Pakatan Harapan MP for Tanjong, said the catamarans would not have room to carry motor vehicles as the ferries have done over the last century.
“The issue raised is that the iconic ferry will be terminated and replaced with catamarans, which have no space for (road) vehicles,” he said.
He expressed hope that Transport Minister Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong will consider allowing the ferry to be redeveloped so that motorists can experience the new service.
He said this in questioning a proposal to replace the ferry service between George Town on the island and Butterworth on the mainland by mid-2022.
In his reply, Wee (BN-Ayer Hitam) said that only 200,000 vehicles currently use the ferry service every year and the state already has two bridges across the Penang Strait.
He added that it is difficult to find spare parts to repair the ferries.
In August, the service was disrupted for three days when all ferries encountered technical problems with their engines.
Currently, operator Rapid Ferry is running four ferries that are about 40 years old.
Two of them – Pulau Talang and Pulau Undan – were built in 1975, while Pulau Angsa and Pulau Kapas were built in 1981.
In existence since 1894, the ferry service has become synonymous with Penang’s heritage and is among the state’s popular attractions for tourists. – The Vibes, December 9, 2020
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