|
|
发表于 8-4-2011 10:28 PM
|
显示全部楼层
Penang takes ‘Best’ step on public transport
By Jeffrey Hardy Quah
April 08, 2011
The Penang Bridge is viewed from the air. The landmark bridge suffers heavy congestion during peak traffic hours. — file pic
GEORGE TOWN, April 8 — It is a familiar sight: Every working day, right after quitting time, the Penang Bridge is filled with thousands of cars (with plenty of empty passenger seats), lines very slowly inching forward. Throngs of executives and factory workers are forced to remain in their cars as traffic grinds to a halt for no apparent reason, doing their best not to lose their tempers.
Penang’s traffic woes are no secret. According to the Road Transport Department, there are some 800,000 cars paying road taxes every year in Penang, along with a million motorcycles — there are more vehicles in Penang than there are people!
The Penang Blueprint 2011-2015 estimates that Penang’s labour force makes up about 700,000 of the population, and only a third of that figure use buses. Figures from the Penang Bridge Corporation are staggering and estimates place the number of vehicles travelling from the mainland to the island at 70,000 vehicles a day (which works out to over 25 million vehicles a year!). That’s a lot of cars and motorcycles adding to the congestion, fuel and toll expenses and air pollution.
Two-thirds of vehicles entering the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zones (FIZs) come from the mainland. While attempts had been made over the years to reduce Penang’s dependence on private cars, nothing seemed to stem the rising tide of traffic.
While a second Penang Bridge (currently under construction) could help take the pressure off an already congested entry point to the island, the fact remains that Penang needs a long-term, sustainable solution now.
The Bridge Express Shuttle Transit (Best) programme is the state government’s latest shot at easing the problem. Launched in March this year by Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng, Best is a park-and-ride programme aimed at encouraging more FIZ workers to use public transport.
“Penang’s Best provides an alternative transport solution for commuters to switch from private vehicles to public transport,” said Jonathan Yeoh, policy aide to Chow Kon Yeow, chairman of Local Government and Traffic Management. “Best serves as a financial inducement for people who stay in mainland Penang to use public transport to travel to the island.”
Less than a month into the programme’s launch, it may still be too early to grade Best’s success. So far, however, passengers seem pleased that the service exists at all.
“It reaches its destination very quickly,” said Parameswari, who works at electronics manufacturer Plexus, and used to hitch a ride in a van every day before she used the bus service. “I’ve used the bus for one or two weeks, and I’ve had no problems with it.”
Loh from Agilent, was especially happy to use the Best programme. “I used to drive down to Penang from Kulim five days a week,” she said. “Taking petrol and the cost of the toll, I usually spent about RM15-RM18 a day. Now I can save on costs.” She first heard about the programme from Agilent that sent out the Best service’s schedule to all its employees.
Another benefit of using the park-and-ride service is that she doesn’t have to worry about parking anymore. “I’m working on a contract basis only, and parking within the company’s premises is limited strictly to staff because of limited space. So I have to park outside. I’ve been fined a few times,” she added with a laugh.
According to bus driver Hayazi, while the programme started off slowly, it’s been picking up steam as weeks go by. “During the second week we had more than 300 people in total,” he said. “We go through every route. Once people are familiar with the schedule, we’ll see more passengers.”
Fellow driver Anwar added, “If more people take the bus, you’ll have fewer cars on the Bridge, and the jams will be reduced.”
Although it’s still early days, some issues have become apparent. The buses so far are inconsistently filled; some drivers report going all the way from Bukit Jambul on the island to the mainland without picking up a single passenger on some days. Others wonder if the time should be extended past 7.30pm.
“If the bus leaves at 4 or 5, that’s convenient if you’re an executive,” said Anwar. “Some lower-level workers leave work later than 7.30pm which means that they can’t use the bus.”
Should the Best programme prove to be a success, it could pave the way for similar programmes down the road, such as routes from the mainland to Komtar and Jelutong.
“With rapid urbanisation, public transport must remain a high priority for the state government,” said Yeoh.
All eyes are now on the Best programme; after years of waiting for someone to do something about it, we may finally be seeing the future of Penang’s integrated public transport.
* This article is taken from the April issue of “Penang Economic Monthly”, published by the Socio-economic and Environmental Institute (SERI), Penang, now out at all good bookshops and newsagents.
http://www.themalaysianinsider.c ... n-public-transport/ |
|
楼主
本周最热论坛帖子
2358 
106
