Penang waiting for tunnel project’s feasibility report
GEORGE TOWN: The state government is waiting for the completion of the feasibility report for the undersea tunnel project before it decides on giving the green light for the third link.
Consortium Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd, which is undertaking the tunnel project, has been tasked with preparing the feasibility report.
The undersea tunnel, linking the island and the mainland, is part of a RM6.3 billion project, which included three paired roads.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow (PH-Padang Kota) said the feasibility report was expected to be completed in October.
“We will go through the feasibility report thoroughly before we decide on the matter.
“While the third-link project is needed for the future, there is no need for us to rush it since the Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Bridge has yet to meet its traffic target,” he said during a question-and-answer session at the state legislative assembly sitting yesterday.
Chow said the third-link project, scheduled to begin in 2023, could have its date pushed back.
State opposition leader Muhamad Yusoff Mohd Noor (BNSungai Dua) asked Chow if the third-link project could be put on hold.
Chow said: “The state government’s commitment is to take into account all views before giving the green light for the project.”
According to the first series of the Auditor General’s Report 2017, which was released on Monday, the bridge had failed to meet its goal of easing congestion on the Penang Bridge.
JKSB (the operator of the bridge) corporate communication head Azizi Azizan said traffic growth on both bridges had been high annually.
“The Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Bridge was meant to reduce traffic on the first bridge by 20 to 25 per cent. However, both bridges have experienced increase in traffic volume annually.
“The Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Bridge experienced significant increase in its traffic volume at 3.48 per cent in 2015, 27.72 per cent (2016) and 28.54 per cent (last year).
“As such, it is not that fewer users are using the Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Bridge, but the traffic growth on both bridges are high annually.”