BUTTERWORTH: Despite the fact that the toll charges for motorcyclists at the Penang Bridge and Sultan Abdul Halim Mu’adzam Shah Bridge have been abolished, some still preferred to spend on the ferry ride to reach the island.
Checks by NSTP found that almost half the lower compartment of the ferry were filled up with motorcycles and it was consistent over several trips made from the Butterworth Ferry Terminal.
Each time they enter, the motorcyclist were charged RM2.
Housewife Maimunah Ahmad, 54, said it was convenient for her to take the ferry instead of plying the Penang Bridge on her motorcycle.
She said lived near Kampung Benggali, located within minutes away from the ferry terminal, which was the reason why she would continue to take the ferry ride.
“I am heading to Batu Ferringhi, so if I take the ferry then I can go straight to the city centre and easily accessible to the route heading there.
“If I were to take the Penang Bridge, it will take 15 more minutes just to reach the bridge. It is faster for me to take the ferry,” she said when met at the Butterworth Ferry Terminal here today.
General worker Mohamad Firdaus Muhamad Yusuff, 20, who used the bridge often, said he took the ferry today because he wanted to avoid the hot after sun.
“It is holiday so I do not want to be tired riding all the way on the bridge before going to the city. It is a day to relax and chill with my friends, hence I decided to take the ferry today.
“I still take the bridge prior to this, and I am happy it has been abolished. But today, I want to go on the ferry,” he said.
Meanwhile, the motorcyclist were thrilled to use the bridge from mainland to the island for free after the charges were abolished exactly at midnight earlier today.
Makhtar Dahlan, 52, said even though the amount paid was only RM1.40, it made a great deal of impact to those commuting between the mainland and the island frequent.
Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng had during the tabling of the 2019 Budget in November announced the abolishment of toll charges for motorcyclists on Penang’s First and Second Bridges effective today.
He also announced motorcyclists would no longer have to pay toll on the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link effective today.
Lim said the abolishment of the toll charges would cost the government RM20 million a year.