2nd PENANG BRIDGE News

[hetfield85]

http://www.btimes.com.my/Current_New...1.txt/Article/
UEM working with Govt to speed up Penang bridge project
By Kamarul Yunus
ahmadk@nstp.com.my

September 13 2006

THE UEM Group should not face any problems in securing financing for construction of the RM2.8 billion second Penang bridge, Second Finance Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop said.

The company will only have to work on getting the best financing deal for the fast-track project, he said.

"I have spoken to UEM officials and we will carry on with the discussion to make sure the second bridge project is put on a fast-track so that the benefit will be given to many, particularly the Penang community," he told reporters after launching the UEM young executive scheme in Putrajaya yesterday.

Nor Mohamed said UEM is working hard with the Economic Planning Unit in the Prime Minister's Department to fast-track the project.

UEM group managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Ahmad Pardas Senin said the company is exploring ways to finance the project.

"It is still in the early stage to identify any specific ones. There are various combinations that we need to re-evaluate and there are many options," he said.

Last month, Ahmad Pardas indicated that UEM may sell bonds to raise funds for the Second Bridge project, which connects Batu Kawan in Seberang Prai and Batu Maung on the island.

The UEM Group was appointed by the Government to build, manage, operate and maintain the 24km second Penang bridge, one of the mega projects to be built under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (2006-2010). UEM is also managing the existing Penang bridge linking the island and mainland Peninsular Malaysia.

Early this month, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had said that the agencies involved will be revamped and that problems faced by Malays on the island are serious.

[TYW]

bomb the bridge before expanding it!!!


Thursday April 5, 2007


Thousands caught in jam after bridge closure

PENANG: Thousands of Penangites were caught in a massive evening jam when the Penang Bridge was closed for more than two hours after police received a call that there was a bomb on the bridge.

Many motorists heading towards the bridge after work were caught unaware and found themselves in a traffic bottleneck at the Bayan Lepas coastal road leading to the bridge on the island and Seberang Jaya on the mainland.

The bridge was closed to traffic at 4.30pm and only reopened at 7pm.

Traffic had to be diverted to the ferry terminals on both the island and Butterworth, causing George Town and Butterworth town to be choked with cars and motorcycles.


Hundreds of motorcyclists lining up at the ferry terminal in Penang after the Penang Bridge (inset) was closed following a bomb hoax on Wednesday. The bridge was closed for more than two hours, but the streets of George Town and Butterworth were choked with vehicles as road users turned to the ferry service. The bridge reopened only at 7pm after a bomb squad declared it safe. - K.T. GOH and CHRIS LIM / The Star

Just hours earlier, a 10-wheel truck had broken down on the bridge before the middle span, causing a traffic crawl that stretched almost 15km to the Juru interchange near Auto City. The truck’s rear wheels had jammed and it took mechanics nearly five hours to get the vehicle moving again.

Around the same time the truck was removed, police at the state contingent headquarters operations room received a call saying that there was a bomb on the bridge.

George Town OCPD Asst Comm Azam Abd Hamid said police then alerted Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon and he gave the green light for the police to close the bridge.

“A six-man bomb squad was sent to the bridge immediately. They found a 0.3m-long, 10cm-diameter steel pipe,” ACP Azman later told a press conference at the Northern Region marine police base.


Rare sight: The mid-span of Penang Bridge completely free of traffic. The bridge was closed for more than two hours after police received a call that there was a bomb.

The pipe, he said, was found wedged in the divider at the 3.9km point of the bridge on the Butterworth-bound side.

“It was suspected that the steel pipe contained explosives. Not taking any risk, the squad detonated it at 6.45pm at the site,” said ACP Azam.

He added that police had earlier informed RTM to announce on air that the bridge would be closed. Messages were later flashed on the electronic signboards advising motorists to use the ferry instead.

Arrangements were also made with the Penang Port authorities to increase the number of ferries to cater to the large number of vehicles heading for the ferry terminals.

Tempers flared on both ends of the bridge as traffic came to a standstill. Irate motorists voiced their frustrations after being stranded for nearly two hours.

[TYW]

Bomb scare at Penang Bridge


An aerial view of the congestion on the roads leading to the Butterworth ferry terminal yesterday.

GEORGE TOWN: The Penang Bridge was closed to traffic yesterday evening following a bomb scare.

The bridge was closed about 5pm after someone called the police and told them there was a bomb on it.

The closure resulted in massive traffic congestion on the island and the mainland.

Fuming motorists were left stranded for more than three hours.

On the mainland, the traffic jam stretched all the way from the bridge area to the Nibong Tebal toll plaza.
The situation was not any better on the island, as motorists were caught in traffic jams on roads leading to the bridge, including the Jelutong Expressway, Jalan Masjid Negeri and Jalan Datuk Keramat.

The bridge closure also saw many motorists making their way to the ferry terminal to catch the ferry instead.

As a result, the normally smooth-flowing traffic to the ferry terminal on the island and mainland became congested.



Northeast district police chief Assistant Commissioner Azam Abd Hamid said police were notified of the threat about 4pm and the bridge was closed as a safety precaution.

He said the bomb disposal squad found a 30cm-long metal pipe, measuring about 10cm in diameter, on a bridge divider at kilometre 3.8 at 5.45pm.

"The squad then detonated the pipe at 6.40pm as we did not want to take any chances."

Azam, however, said it was too early to tell if the pipe contained an explosive device as investigations were still ongoing.

The bridge was reopened to traffic about 7pm.

[Blue_Sky]

Thank God nothing really happen there

[AhChuan]

So...is a bomb hoax ah???

[Pablo]

stupid person....the traffic jam into my housing area..

[TYW]

and my aunty was caught in the jam. she came back like 9pm. she usually comes back around 6

[Pablo]

Penang bridge with no car...valuable pic

[TYW]

Penang Bridge closure sparked by call by state exco Koay
Opalyn Mok
PENANG (April 5, 2007): The chain of events that led to the closure of Penang Bridge yesterday afternoon was apparently set in motion by a query from a bridge worker to a state executive councillor, and was not a bomb threat.
Datuk Koay Kar Huah, who is the exco in charge of public works, utilities and transportation, said today he received a call from a friend, who is a staff at the bridge, asking him whether it was true there was a bomb at the bridge.

Koay said this when asked by reporters about talk that it was his call to the police that led to the bridge's closure for two hours and 40 minutes that resulted in a gridlock for peak-hour commuters.

"I called up my staff to check it out and the staff then called the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) to verify the information," he said in a joint press conference with Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr Koh Tsu Koon.

Koh added that Koay's friend must have heard something about a bomb for him to make the call.

When pressed by reporters whether the call from the LLM gave enough details of what had transpired to help police assess the situation, Koh said regardless of what was said in the call, "police have to take such calls seriously as it involves public safety".

"Police recommended the bridge be closed because they didn't want to take the 1% to 2% chance of the threat being real," he said.

Deputy police chief SAC II Datuk Othman Harun, who was also present at the press conference, confirmed police received the call from an LLM staff.

"We have called the staff in for questioning," he added.

He confirmed a kangaroo bar was found wrapped in cloth and paper on the bridge and that it did not contain explosives.

However, he could not confirm whether the bomb hoax was linked to an explosion in a coffee shop in Taman Seri Rambai early this morning.

"We have sent the bar found on the bridge and the explosive substances in Taman Seri Rambai for further analysis," he said.

Earlier, Koh announced two new steps for future emergencies.

"The first step is that a communication and coordination path will be created between all agencies involved," he said.

The second was to expand the communication network beyond radio to include factories, government agencies and schools to reach more bridge users.

He added that these steps would also reduce the incidence of rumours being spread.

Koh said the bridge's CCTV system would also be further upgraded.

He said the police would immediately take action in the interest of public safety, as they did yesterday, in response to any future incident.

[AhChuan]

Originally Posted by Pablo

stupid person....the traffic jam into my housing area..

So..ur home near Penang bridge?? Good la...everyday can see the longest bridge in Asia...

[cooltemper]

We really need the second bridge!

[Pablo]

Originally Posted by AhChuan

So..ur home near Penang bridge?? Good la...everyday can see the longest bridge in Asia...

ya..my house quite near to Penang Bridge But cant c the bridge

[TYW]

Originally Posted by cooltemper

We really need the second bridge!

agreed!! anything happening on the bridge like a car breakdown will reduce the traffic in the whole state to a standstill

[SEED]

wow.. that dramatic? even if they start now.. people will still hav to wait for years for it to complete.. even if PORR is build now.. they'll still never solve the traffic problem(i think).. theres just too many cars on that tiny island i think..

[Magician]

This proves that how badly Penang needs another alternative route to the Mainland... a second bridge? an underwater driveway?...

[cooltemper]

Even if we line up the ferries from island to mainland, it still cannot cope with the huge traffice volume.

WE NEED SECOND LINK!

Pls don't just show us some ground breaking ceromony for the 2nd bridge then seem to be nothing really happen to the construction of the bridge!

[Pablo]

Maybe this incident is the catalyst for them to built the second bridge faster

Hope so

[AhChuan]

I would like to see Penang got underwater tunnel...

Well, where will be the 2nd Penang Bridge?? Near the 1st one ah??

[Sabahkid]

Originally Posted by cooltemper

Even if we line up the ferries from island to mainland, it still cannot cope with the huge traffice volume.

WE NEED SECOND LINK!

Pls don't just show us some ground breaking ceromony for the 2nd bridge then seem to be nothing really happen to the construction of the bridge!

I reckon u need more than just the 2nd Link. A well-planned public transport system, such as a combination of bus, rail and ferry between the mainland & Penang Island will be crucial to tackle the worsening traffic. Without an efficient public transport, the no. of car on road will keep increasing. How many link u can build? 3, 4, 5, or 10? Traffic woes need to be tackled from 2 directions: demand & supply. Supply more roads to cater to the demand and at the same time, switch more road users to public transport to reduce the demand on the road space. Logical?

cheers

[TYW]

Originally Posted by AhChuan

I would like to see Penang got underwater tunnel...

Well, where will be the 2nd Penang Bridge?? Near the 1st one ah??

the original plan for the bridge was a half bridge and half tunnel. however, it is too expensive and many disliked the location. it is located at the north channel, near Gurney Drive.

so now the 2nd bridge will be at the south channel, near the airport. it will cost the same as the tunnel bridge but it will be much longer.