THE proposed North Coastal Paired Road (NCPR) project is a hotly debated topic among the islanders.
The project is one of three proposed by the Penang government to ease traffic congestion. The other two are the 4.2km Persiaran Gurney-Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu bypass and the 5.7km Air Hitam-Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu bypass.
The 10.6km-long NCPR, costing over RM1 billion, will connect Tanjung Bungah and Teluk Bahang. It is said to cut travelling time by 14 minutes. The project has come under much scrutiny as one of the most expensive highway ever — the price was initially tagged at RM580 million in 2011.
In March, at the state assembly sitting, the price was quoted as RM892,830,623.08. However, in a recent filing to Bursa Malaysia, it has been upped to RM1.11 billion.
Many have described the hike as “dodgy”. They are perplexed by the RM120,435,623.08 paid just for studies of the project, and have also voiced their concerns on social media platforms.
Comments include “RM1.11 billion for the road. It is made of gold, diamonds, or what?”
The Tanjung Bungah Residents Association (TBRA) recently called on the state government to scrap the project, objecting the lack of proper cost-benefit analysis, among others.
According to the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) for the project, “the travel time from Tanjung Bungah to Teluk Bahang using the existing road was between 20 and 23 minutes”, while the proposed highway will reduce travel time to nine minutes with vehicles travelling about 70kph.
The EIA also showed that 3.34ha of forest would be affected as it would pass through the Teluk Bahang and Bukit Kerajaan forest reserves.
TBRA feels the road project would not resolve the traffic congestion in Tanjung Bungah, but likely aggravate it.
“The road ends abruptly in Lembah Permai. This means the vehicles will end up in a bottleneck in Tanjung Bungah.”
TBRA also claimed that most residents were not consulted on the matter.
Tanjung Bungah DAP assemblyman Teh Yee Cheu had urged the Penang government to scrap the project and replace it with a Mass Rapid Transit system instead as that would have a minimal impact on the environment.
State Works, Transportation and Utilities Committee chairman Lim Hock Seng, responding to the calls against the project, said the Penang government had considered all alternatives.
Teh recently launched an online voting system on his website for Tanjung Bungah residents to vote on the proposed NCPR.
Residents have until Oct 31 to submit their votes, which would be forwarded to the state government.
The ball is now with the Tanjung Bungah residents. Speak up or forever hold your peace.
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The writer is NST’s Penang bureau chief. She enjoys the sun, the sea and the sand, from which she draws her inspiration