Traffic flow on the Penang Bridge, which was earlier reduced to a bumper-to-bumper crawl by black smoke caused by fire at three Tenaga Nasional Berhad high-voltage cables, returned to normalcy this evening.

A Penang Bridge Sdn Bhd spokesman said the traffic flow was back as usual about 6pm.

Eight hours earlier, the high-voltage cables at the 2km stretch of Perai heading towards here, had caught fire, resulting in thick black smoke engulfing the area.

Although firemen put out the blaze at 4pm, traffic flow only returned to normal about two hours later.

Earlier, the traffic jam on the bridge caused many to turn to the ferries.

A motorist, technician Ong Ee Fatt, 32, said he was stumped to find so many vehicles on the ferry terminal, resulting in his being stuck in the congestion for more than three hours, starting 3pm.

He reached the Raja Tun Uda jetty here about 6pm.

"I use the ferry almost every weekend to visit my friends on the mainland but never had I come across such heavy traffic flow as today," added Ong.

Stuck in Butterworth for two hours

Another motorist, Katie Ooi, 48, said she was stuck at the Sultan Abdul Halim jetty in Butterworth for about two hours, beginning 3pm.

She was on her way back after visiting friends when she was caught in a traffic jam.

Earlier, Penang Port Sdn Bhd duty officer Mohamed Rani Harun said a sixth ferry was added to its ferry service about 3pm, due to traffic congestion on the Penang Bridge caused by the fire.

The fire had forced the closure of the right lanes on both sides of the bridge, causing a 10km-long traffic congestion.

- Bernama