GEORGE TOWN: Penang will send a formal letter seeking federal approval for a third bridge from the island to the mainland, days after Works Minister Datuk Seri Fadillah Yusof denied there was such a request.
Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said a bridge from Gurney Drive to Bagan Ajam would cost RM1.8bil compared to RM3.7bil for the proposed 6.5km undersea tunnel.
“Such cost savings may allow the state government to waive the need to charge toll for the third bridge,” he said in a statement yesterday.
The state government, he said, would send a formal letter to Fadillah next week to seek federal approval.
During the state assembly sitting on Friday, Lim had challenged the Federal Government to approve the third bridge.
He had also said the state had no choice but to build the undersea tunnel because it was difficult to obtain federal approval.
The state government, Lim claimed, was obligated to get federal approval for such a project because of a previous agreement when Penang was ruled by Barisan Nasional but that this did not include the building of an undersea tunnel.
In an immediate response, Fadillah thanked Lim for “coming clean” by confirming that the Federal Government had never rejected or made it difficult for the Penang government to receive approval in the past to build a third Penang Bridge.
“The Federal Government may request the Penang government to submit all relevant documentation related to their request for a third bridge linking the island to the mainland,” he said in a statement yesterday.
He said this could include the three project studies costing RM305mil.
On Saturday, Penang Gerakan acting chief Oh Tong Keong slammed Lim for failing to discuss the bridge with Penangites and that he should submit the plans to the Federal Government if he was sincere about it.
Yesterday, Lim said he had stated that it would be difficult to get federal approval due to what he described as a “painful experience” over requests to build the Light Rail Transit (LRT) in Penang.
The Federal Government, he claimed, had not replied to numerous letters from the state government to allow the building of an LRT line at its own expense.
“When there was no reply, the state government had no choice but to appoint a Project Delivery Partner (PDP) for the RM27bil Public Transport Master Plan by open tender.
“The PDP is the facilitator – not only to make the master plan technically and financially viable but to also secure regulatory approvals for public transport licensing and Detailed Impact Environment Assessment studies.
“From this painful experience, it would be difficult to secure a response to build a third bridge –much less obtain federal approval – even one self-financed by the state government,” Lim said.
There was no reason, he added, for the Federal Government not to approve the third bridge as it would be fully financed by Penang and he hoped Fadillah could agree to it so that the state could test if this could be built “toll-free”.
Penang MCA deputy chairman Tan Teik Cheng said as a state leader, Lim should not assume that the Federal Government would not grant approval when it came to an especially important matter such as this.
“I hope he will stop playing politics and do the necessary before simply making accusations against the Federal Government.”
