GEORGE TOWN, Sept 6 — An underground MRT line connecting all of Penang island would be better for the state compared to a proposal for three paired roads, DAP assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu said today.
The Tanjung Bungah state lawmaker said he is in favour of the rail infrastructure as it will have a lower environmental impact.
“The paired roads are more traffic oriented and will not solve congestion problems,” he told reporters at his service centre in Tanjung Bungah.
An MRT will also reduce the number of cars on the roads, he added.
“Of course, the costs will be high, but this should not be a hindrance to building a system that is good for the people,” he said.
Teh also said he disagreed with the proposed North Coastal paired road to link Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang. The proposed 10.6km road starts at Jalan Lembah Permai in Tanjung Bungah and ends at Lengkok Teluk Bahang.
“There is no connectivity between Jalan Lembah Permai and Tanjung Tokong down to Gurney Drive so this could create a bottleneck along that road,” he said.
The paired road project is part of the RM6.34 billion undersea tunnel and three paired roads project undertaken by Consortium Zenith.
The other two proposed paired roads connects Gurney Drive to Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway and Ayer Itam to Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu Expressway.
At the news conference, Teh also announced an online system for Tanjung Bungah residents to vote on the proposed North Coastal paired road project.
“We want to gather residents’ feedback on the project so registered Tanjung Bungah voters can go to my official website to access the online poll and vote on the project,” he said.
The polling system will be updated on his website, tanjongbunga.com today. Residents have one month to cast their vote either for against the paired roads project.
Teh said he will then forward all feedback from residents in a report to the Penang government for further action.
