GEORGE TOWAN, June 24 – The Penang government has chosen to best alignment for the Penang Mutiara Line Light Rail Transit (LRT) project, as proposed by Mass Rapid Transit Corp Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp).
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said the state government had written to the Transport Ministry two weeks ago to confirm its agreement with the proposed alignment.
“We have chosen an alignment very similar to the original, with only slight differences. The alignment proposed by MRT Corp is the best for future connectivity with other routes.
“The alignment chosen by the state government starts from Silicon Island and connects Penang Sentral (mainland) to the Macallum area in George Town,” he told a press conference regarding the Penang Green International Conference and Expo 2024 (PGIGCE 2024) at his office in Komtar on Monday.
On the progress of the project, Chow said all major decisions have been made, and it is now at the open tender stage.
On March 29, Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook announced that the Federal Government had officially taken over the Penang LRT Route Mutiara project from the state government, with MRT Corporation appointed as the developer and asset owner.
The project procurement is divided into three main components: Civil construction for Silicon Island to Komtar alignment (Segment 1), Civil construction for Komtar to Penang Sentral alignment (Segment 2) and Turnkey systems and rolling stocks on a Build-Maintain-Transfer (BMT) basis.
