The Penang government is hoping to secure a conditional approval for its first line of the Bayan Lepas light rail transit (LRT) project from the Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) by next month.

State Local Government, Traffic Management and Flood Mitigation Committee chairperson Chow Kon Yeow said SRS Consortium, the project delivery partner for the Penang Transport Master Plan (PTMP), has met Spad last week for discussions.

“They have met and its seems favourable to the state,” he told reporters after the PTMP briefing with the representative from the Japanese companies based in Penang in George Town today.

He said the official application to Spad was submitted through the State Secretary’s Office on March 29.

Chow added that the approval for the proposed Bayan Lepas LRT would allow the state to proceed with a three-month public inspection beginning August, to allow public feedback.

“We hope to commence the construction on the Bayan Lepas line - the first phase of the LRT project - by next year and the operations for the first phase should begin by 2023 while the full line should be operational by 2030,” he said.

Chow said that once Spad grants the approval, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) will be set up to administer the implementation of the projects.

“The SPV will be a government entity that will also be tasked with facilitating city planning, development, promotion and management of the Penang South Reclamation (PSR) project,” he said.

However, Chow said the state government are constantly looking for ways to ensure sustainable operations for future transport assets.

The Bayan Lepas LRT project, along with the Pan-Island Highway link and the reclamation of two islands off southern Penang, are part of the first phase of the PTMP’s implementation.

The RM27 billion PTMP projects also consist of a 6.5-kilometre undersea tunnel, three highways and Penang Sky Cab.

- Bernama