PIL1 - a plan with a greater purpose

LETTER | We refer to the letter Egos driving Penang PIL1. We would like to thank the writer for indeed recognising that PIL1 will be a “superhighway” for the significant purposes it has to substantially serve Penang and its people.

Many of the concerns and points raised in the letter have been addressed before on various platforms and occasions and hence this response will be with a view to elucidate and reiterate the strong rationale behind the PIL1’s conception.

Penang's basic road network is essentially radial and ring road type (albeit “half ring” as an island). This basic highway network of radial and ring roads is needed for traffic dispersal and to improve accessibility; similar to other cities in Malaysia or other countries.

It is important to understand the context of highway development in the course of road network development responding to the spread of urban development. There will be a need to have bypasses to disperse traffic away from the city centre rather than encourage traffic into it

In Penang, there is an Inner Ring Road (Jalan Sg Pinang and Jalan Pangkor) and Middle Ring Road (MRR). The Green Lane or Jln Masjid Negeri plays the role of MRR but the rate of current developments has since overstrained its traffic dispersal function. Hence, what is needed now is an outer bypass to enhance the traffic dispersal function of the greater George Town developments in which PIL 1 will be fitting squarely into that function.

PIL 1 will be strategic bypass segregating regional traffic from local traffic for better traffic dispersal while also improve accessibility from north to south of the island. This is also needed as the second spine to relieve the congested Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu (LCE) Expressway which is the only strategic north-south highway linking the south of the island to the north and is already overloaded at a forced flow, Level of Service F grade.

Assertions that PIL1 will not help with regional traffic dispersal are out of sync with traffic impact studies that have been undertaken and presented time and again.

In fact, in a wider perspective for Penang, the PIL 1 will serve as one of the important five links in the state highway network (“Greater Ring Road”) along with Gurney Expressway, a proposed third link, the North–South Expressway and the Second Bridge. The road is able to cater for industrial goods vehicles associated with Bayan Lepas and increase connectivity to the mainland and wider peninsular via the second and third links.

PIL1 will operate below capacity for 15 years and improve travel speeds across road networks as in the EIA report

According to the EIA report, PIL1 will still be operating below maximum capacity for 15 years after opening till 2040 and beyond, when combined with other collective and concerted push-pull factors introduced by the government to drive mindset changes towards adopting public transportation as a first option. Hence PIL1’s function will still be relevant even after the targeted modal share transition is achieved

The EIA report also mentions that the PIL 1 is expected to improve travel speeds across the islands significantly. Based on the EIA report, the speed will improve 31 percent (island), one percent (mainland) and 11 percent (the whole state) for AM peak. Even at the challenging target at 40 percent public transport, the majority of users will still be moving by road, and the PIL1 will assist in mitigating the deteriorating travel speeds.

In terms of cost and benefits, the Request for Proposal (RFP) has included a cost-benefit analysis (CBA) carried out by a consultant for PIL1 where an economic model was analysed based on economic cost and benefit data over a 30-year study period.

The users on PIL1 will benefit in terms of time-saving as a result of modal shift and improved traffic congestion from the change in average speed on the highway network. The other direct benefits are the savings in vehicle operating costs (VOCs) as a result of a change in capacity and efficiency of the transport network and the subsequent change in fuel consumption.

The CBA of PIL1 also includes non-user benefits or externalities in environmental benefits. Taken together, the monetised cost and benefit impacts give an estimate of the present value of the economic feasibility of PIL1; i.e. the benefit-cost ratio is close to two.

Prioritising public transport for a 40 percent mode share does not negate the need for the highway (in remaining mode share)

Cities become more liveable, progressive and sustainable when there is enhanced accessibility and connectivity to move people around and this is achieved by providing sufficient and seamless public transport. However, moving people solely on public transport is not as realistic as the migration from private to public transport will take time. Private vehicle ownership will continue to rise in developing countries and to cater to this, roads need to be added to meet this demand.

As a developing country, Malaysia’s economic growth and the demand for mobility has caused a rapid rise of vehicles on the road. In Penang over the last 10 years, the number of vehicles has increased by 38 percent (from 1.8 million to 2.5 million in 2017) consisting of cars, motorbikes, buses, lorries and taxis. In the past decade, there has only been one main spine road in Penang - the Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu (LCE) Expressway that is constantly congested with standstill traffic during peak hours. The already over-loaded LCE has a Level of Service F – forced flow and new developments in Penang will continue to worsen this congestion.

Singapore recognises the need for increasing the number of expressways in tandem with rail lines to meet the demand of increasing vehicles despite having a public transport mode share at 67 percent. Over the same decade, while the number of vehicles in Singapore increased by only 13 percent (from 850,000 to 962,000), Singapore has built two expressways in that 10-year period. Today, Singapore has 11 expressways and six major rail lines.

It is important to understand that while provision for public transport is needed for a more sustainable way to commute especially during peak hours; highways like the PIL1 are needed to disperse traffic away from the local roads thus freeing road space for last mile connection to public transport.

It is always the smaller details that give us the big picture. To be able to see the big picture, one has to evaluate if remonstrations have a basis or is it just groupthink?

SRS CONSORTIUM is the project delivery partner appointed by the Penang government for the Penang Transport Master Plan. 

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of Malaysiakini.