"I WILL be the first person to commit suicide by jumping from it (the Penang Bridge) if it is ever built."
This was boldly uttered by a political opponent of the late Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu, dubbed the Father of Modern Penang, before the construction of the Penang Bridge, which was met with much opposition then, claiming it was a waste of money.
Today, 35 years on since it was officially opened on Aug 3, 1985, the first bridge is standing stronger than ever and continues to remain the preferred choice for motorists commuting between the island and mainland, although the state now has a second bridge — the Sultan Abdul Halim Mu'adzam Shah Bridge.
Dr Lim, who possessed a keen sense of humour, had the greatest satisfaction of inviting that very same politician when the bridge was completed. But, of course, he did not jump off it.
The account of this event even earned a mention in Tim Donoghue's book, The Full Biography: Karpal Singh, Tiger of Jelutong 1940-2014.
Before 1985, the only mode of transport between the island and the mainland were state-owned ferry services. Today, these have since become iconic as they have now been regarded as among the state's main attractions.
The idea to build the bridge was mooted by Malaysia's second prime minister Tun Abdul Razak Hussein and Dr Lim in the early 1970s. By the end of 1971, the government had appointed Christiani & Nielsen of Denmark to carry out a feasibility study.
Later in 1985, the then prime minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad officially opened the bridge. In the opening ceremony, he crossed the bridge in a Jalur Gemilang-adorned red Proton Saga, which was driven by his wife, Datin Seri Dr Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali.
A month later, the RM850 million Penang Bridge was officially opened to traffic by the fourth Yang di-Pertua Negeri, Tun Dr Awang Hassan.
To mark the opening, commemorative postage stamps with denominations of 20 sen, 40 sen and RM1 were issued by the Malaysian Postal Services Department (now Pos Malaysia) on Sept 15, 1985.
More than 2,300 people were involved in the construction of the first Penang Bridge, which saw some 20 workers killed during the course of building. The most tragic incident was when five workers were killed on Oct 20, 1984 after a crossbeam collapsed. Ten workers, including two South Koreans, died within the first two years after construction began in 1982.
Legend has it that pillar 56 of the bridge held the "secret" to mysterious incidents, with most fishermen staying away from the area, despite the abundance of marine life there.
It was said that when construction began, workers faced difficulties which hindered construction work, forcing them to resort to mysticism to solve the problem.
Over the years, the bridge has been a frequent spot for suicides and road accidents.
One of the most tragic crashes was on Jan 20 last year, when a Mazda CX-5 sports utility vehicle (SUV) driven by a college student plunged into the sea at Km4 of the Penang Bridge after it collided with a speeding Toyota Vios driven by his friend. After a three-day search and rescue operation, the SUV was winched out of the sea, with the victim still strapped to the driver's seat.
The Penang Bridge has an overall length of 13.5km — 8.4km above water, 1.5km on Penang island and 3.6km in Prai. The 225m main span is 33m above water, held up by four 101.5m towers.
Only once in its history was it closed to accommodate a dinner function on the bridge. Several days before its official opening in September 1985, the people got the chance to walk on the structure, attracting thousands of people then.
Being a Penang icon, a grand celebration will be fitting when the bridge celebrates its golden jubilee in 2035.