The online signature petition against SRS Consortium’s RM46bn mega transport plan has streaked past the 15,000 mark, leaving the petition in support of the plan trailing in the dust with just over 12,200 signatures. Syabas Penangites!
That’s an increase of about a thousand signatures against the plan in a single day.
The renewed momentum comes on the heels of the state government’s public forum on the plan yesterday, which witnessed a flash protest inside Dewan Sri Pinang when more questions were raised than could be satisfactorily answered.
Based on the two rival petitions, that’s about 55% against and 45% in support – close to my 60:40 estimate of the crowd reaction at the forum yesterday. What’s more, as the green movement in Penang grows, the opposition against the SRS plan will swell even more in the coming days and weeks as more and more Penangites wake up to discover what the Penang Developers Master Plan (PDMP) PTMP is all about.
Most Penangites are simply too smart to be taken for a long ride, despite the best efforts of public relations teams and biased pro-developer newspapers.
Remember, Penangites rallied behind a similar signature petition to save Penang Hill from a greedy developer back around 1990. In those days, it was a simple postcard campaign spearheaded by NGOs that foiled the developer’s plan and saved the hill. In the general election that year, voters even dumped the then long-serving Penang Chief Minister, Lim Chong Eu, in a stunning upset, after which he promptly retired.
You would have thought that Penang politicians would have learned a lesson or two from that debacle. There is still time for them to do the right thing and scrap the SRS plan in favour of more sustainable and cost-effective improvements to public transport. Say NO to greed at the expense of the ecology.
Just look at the havoc in Klang today.
Climate change is upon us and we’d better do all we can to protect the ecological balance in Penang and the rest of Malaysia instead of undermining it.
| Please help to support this blog if you can. Read the commenting guidlelines for this blog. |
Putting your Aye or Nay into vote system or petition system is truly a major milestone to settle problems in Malaysia. PH administration should consider utilizing such petition system to gauge public sentiments. Staging protest look very silly and childish.(Because some people protest without a reason or cause) What could be achieve by making people angry,confuse and nervous? The Trackless Tram/train (some calls it a long bus)launched by China is worth looking into. Hopefully it is as good as they claimed. Expected that the China’s Beijing govt will NOT back down from any of their contracted agreement signed with previous… Read more »
What China build is for Chinese road. Chinese has population over few millions in hundreds or thousands of cities. The roads are not beh cheh . their roads are 3 or lanes one way hance making 6 to 8 lanes load. Everyone judges the art by photos and Penang narrow mind. .Compare French build bouvards.
China lost the ECRL contract, may get even on ART if chosen over LRT with high price tag.
Pg lang are narrow minded and never take a tram or on road light rail before. When tram opern its doors, there are those will not pay. You expect the driver to check thee tickets like buses? If check then further delays. Okay pg lang can have trams or ARTs but roger and pg forum going to pay the difference for those evading the fares when thee doors open? If you restrict the doors and check tickets, the journey time will triple and couple with longer waiting time. Pg forums and tung lang never take public transport. Those take public… Read more »
Pls try harder to spin the spins!
Come to Penang & I will show you my collection of Pg Rapid tickets since 2013 to shut up your spins.
Don’t spin. Go and show us otherwise go and disappear and don’t show your name or other name again.
It is more meaningful to have a petition urging Penang folks to ditch theur personal cars and take public bus.
Wonder why Penang Forum never think of this.
Chicken and egg problem. If you want people to ditch their cars, the bus service must be efficient enough. The traffic gridlock must be resolved for bus service to be punctual. But since people won’t take the bus first, the gridlock will not be resolved. Encouragement won’t work, you need a carrot and stick approach.
Anil himself find out from rapid the usage is only 60%. Pg forum did nothing to encourage its members to use rapid. Eg how many go to forum and protest use rapid? As said, many wants to save time using personal cars.
Greens must make sacrifices. After all they are first to protest. We have thousands who sign online. They must be the front line soldiers. They must be first to ditch cars and use buses. With protests, there is ayam and telor. Only salted duck eggs.
The ART system from China is not a proven system.
Buying from China is a risk – high price in the long run and be held ransom. Also China may bring in it’s Nationals to build the system in Penang, depriving jobs to locals.
Pg forum is trying all means to justify its action. How can a financial Dr. quote ART when there are no data to show how beneficial is ART??
It is crystal clear that no matter what we (the rakyat) say or do, the DAP govt will bulldoze this projects through especially now that there is no check and balance with the PH govt at Putrajaya. We can clearly see the attitude of the state govt has changed completely, from one that was at least mindful of public opinion to one that has a total disregard and “Govt knows the best, you people just shut the **** up” mindset. We thought the new CM would be a better and a more people oriented one compared to the previous “know-it-all”… Read more »
Calvin,come here and spin again after enjoy working in HK. As expatriate, you travel by MRT and buses or taking trams which come every 5 to 7 mins during peak hours or 15 mins off peak. Further there are P and S buses which are express. Why people still buy cars especially SUVs even HK has one of the best public transport in the world? But why HK has 3 tunnel crossing and the Wan Cai bypass to bypass Central? Of course, they boast about more democratic than singapore and does not want to control by LKY. Even HK thinks… Read more »
The state government will look into Penang Forum’s suggestion of an Autonomous Rail Rapid Transit (ART) system as an alternative to the light rail transit (LRT). Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state government was briefed by China Railway Construction Corporation (CRCC) on the new train system last week. “ART is relatively new. CRCC presented the system to us with the same slides and video used by Penang Forum. “All this while, Penang Forum never mentioned ART. Before this, they spoke of trams,” Chow said, responding to the presentation made by Penang Forum member Dr Lim Mah Hui. “It… Read more »
Some hope for Penang Forum?
Quoting ART is trying to justify. Show us pg roads exceed 15m radius turning.
If a library can disapper under GBS@Mayang at Bayan Baru, some of your favourite haunts could also disappear under PIL?
YB Sim may consider reinstating Bayan Baru library at one of the empty shoplots of D’Piazza? Reader please thumb up if you agree with this proposal.
For any public transport(more buses ,ART,LRT) to work in Penang, there must in parallel be imposed severe cost penalty for using cars in Georgetown,Bayan Lepas during peak hours. Penangites love their cars, including me, but we all have to make sacrifices. The PIL concept is abominable and a blatant “developer” play. Its like an getting insomniac addicted to sleeping pills instead of analyzing the real root of the problem. Supposedly they want to save driving time for folks in Gurney, but by bringing in more single driver cars to Bayan Lepas, the traffic congestion is going to get much worse… Read more »
To resolve the ‘Chicken and egg problem’, for a start charge single driver cars upon entering city centre, use the money to provide free bus services with timely frequency.
Good proposal but how would you identify single driver cars? Using camera with AI? If you have use manually manned checkpoints, that would cause jam.
Employ religious bigots good at peeping on others’ privacy as they have sharp eyes! A good job alternative for them to better use of time & earn some real money instead of taxing the national coffer via night raid allowances.
Everything money. Think money. Talk money.
PTMP is proof that capitalists can subvert any government within one or 2 terms.
Not reported: At one tall building in Klang, some glass windows were blown out.
Penang reveals three highways to include tiered tunnel, elevated roads
https://www.malaymail.com/s/1679646/penang-reveals-three-highways-to-include-tiered-tunnel-elevated-roads
The EIA for the three highways was submitted for approval in April 2017, which the Department of Environment (DOE) approved on November 7 last year.
The EIA approval came with 59 conditions including for controlled earthworks, water quality control, slope stabilisation works, erosion control, noise and vibration control, controlled rock blasting activities and ensuring all environmental requirements are fulfilled.
Is there a petition for those who support d plan?
Autonomous Rail-rapid Transit (ART) – about 90% Cheaper Than LRT !!
https://www.change.org/p/yab-tuan-chow-cancel-pil1-highway-sos-keep-penang-beautiful-without-pollution-environmental-impact/u/23357029?cs_tk=AY_Man6ZEHuWDCR1t1sAKpYyGphgXD6W0Kt-DPGhog%3D%3D&utm_campaign=7d41e3f305e547908d87c6ac54ab6699&utm_medium=email&utm_source=petition_update&utm_term=cs
No studies carried yet pluck from the thin air to say 90% cheaper. Why not 20% or 97%