THOSE whose lives would be affected by the North Coast Pair Road (TCPR) must speak up in opposition to the RM1 billion project, said the Tanjung Bungah Residents Association (TBRA).

The NCPR is a new 10.53km alternative road linking Teluk Bahang and Tanjung Bungah in the north of Penang Island. It is part of the ambitious and much criticised Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP).

TBRA deputy chairman Agnes James said even though the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report for the project had been approved by federal authorities, the people could still object to the project. 

“Make your votes count. Talk to your assemblyman and MP, and write to the chief minister. This is no time to stay quiet,” she told a forum on the NCPR at a condominium in Tanjung Bungah last night.

“When Penangites fought the Penang Hill development (in the early 1990s), the state government was forced to reconsider.

“It is not the end. There is time to make changes. We need to change the government’s mindset from building roads to focusing on public transport.”

TBRA and civil group Penang Forum have from the start been opposed to NCPR, which construction James said was planned without adequate public consultation.

“It was only in last November that we heard from CAP (Consumers Association of Penang) that NCPR had passed the EIA. We were really kept out of the loop,” she said.

James said the NCPR, which would save motorists 14 minutes of travel time, was not worth the RM1 billion and other costs the people would have to bear.

She said the road would cross 21 rivers, pass 35 residential areas, impact 54 areas with noise pollution, and open up areas in Tanjung Bungah for new development.

Among the neighbourhoods that will be affected are Taman Leader Condominium, Jalan Chee Seng 8, Jalan Chee Seng, Taman Tanjung Bungah, Surin Condominium, Coastal Tower, Desa Mar Vista Apartment, Beverly Hills, Shamrock Beach, Sri Sayang Service Apartment, Ferringhi Delima Condominium and Kg Batu Ferringhi.

“It is going to be in your face. High-rise condo residents will no longer see clear sky but an elevated road passing near their homes,” she said, citing the EIA.

The project will also lead to the destruction of water catchment areas and cause air pollution and vibration, James said.

James said the government could have considered introducing water taxis, feeder buses and ride sharing.

Penang Forum’s Dr Kam Suan Pheng, a soil expert and environmentalist, said it was risky to build a road on hilly land.

She said although most of NCPR was at grade, it was built on hill slopes and relatively high ground, some parts 156m above sea level.

“When you build on sloping ground, you have to cut the slope. The construction will expose soil along much of the alignment,” she said.

Tanjung Bungah residents have been seeing developments take shape on hill slopes in the area for years as developers build high-rise residences, including condos on the hills.

Kam also said the authorities did not have a very good track record in monitoring and enforcement to ensure projects like that did not lead to environmental problems.

She cited the November storm disaster last year as example During the storm, a road in front of a row of bungalows on a slope in Tanjung Bungah had collapsed. 

Penang Forum’s Khoo Salma Nasution said the government should also tell Tanjung Bungah residents exactly where the interchanges for the NCPR would be built.

The NCPR is one of the three major roads to be constructed by Zenith Construction Sdn Bhd, the same firm that will build the proposed undersea tunnel linking the island and the mainland.

The other two roads are the Air Itam-Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu bypass (Package 2) and Persiaran Gurney-Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu bypass (Package 3). The former is scheduled to be built in the first quarter of next year before work begins on NCPR. – October 8, 2018.