Lack of Common Sense

My letter in the New Straits Times
2010/10/25

Penang services: Lack of common sense

IF we take a close look at the many issues highlighted by the public, we will see that a majority of them can be avoided or resolved with common sense.

Too often, a lack of common sense gives rise to unnecessary problems or inconvenience to the public. I wish to illustrate this with some examples in Penang.

The new bus terminal in Butterworth, though temporary, is modern, well-organised and clean. It is also free of annoying touts, and I must commend the authorities for this.

However, one can't help but wonder about the illogical flow of buses that leads to congestion, though it is still manageable at the moment.

All buses, which come from one direction from the main road, enter the terminal at the far end. This brings them into a loop and when they leave the terminal at the near end, they meet with the oncoming buses waiting to turn at the other end.

The congestion is made worse by indiscriminate parking of vehicles around the area. Even a layman can tell you that reversing the flow would prevent the chaotic situation. I can't think of any reason why the flow was designed that way.

The bus terminal is connected to the ferry terminal and the train station only through escalators. Near the escalators, there is a sign that says: "Link to ferry and KTMB".
One can only conclude that all tourists are expected to know that KTMB is a train station.

Heavy usage of these escalators causes frequent breakdowns, and when that happens, we can see a large crowd of people from the ferry waiting their turn to get on the escalators.

As the escalators are the only link between the two terminals, repair or maintenance work on them is extremely difficult unless done in the middle of the night, which is not the case.

Ironically, there is an old staircase and escalators just metres away which used to connect to the old bus terminal. This provides an alternative way to the new bus terminal without much cost, but the old staircase and escalators are blocked and left unused for unknown reasons.

When you board the ferry, very often, you will be "greeted" by the sight of crew members standing or sitting on the bench staring at people, especially the women. Sometimes, they continue to sit on the bench even when passengers are looking for a seat. It is embarrassing to see this.

I save my comments on the toilets and the miserable condition on the ferry when it rains.

When you reach the island, it is a long walk to the bus terminal. The winding walkway is very taxing for commuters, what more senior citizens, the handicapped or those with heavy luggage.

The walkway can be shortened significantly if the authorities put a staircase or escalators at a certain point. The distance can be further reduced if it goes straight into the bus terminal instead of going around it.

The waiting area at the island's terminal has a small gate controlled by a worker. When there are too many people waiting for the ferry, the worker will forcibly close the gate against the oncoming crowd. It is a matter of time before a serious accident happens; a better control mechanism is badly needed.

Again, I reserve my comments on things like the silly Jangan membuang sampah /Do not throw rubbish signs, frequent ramp breakdowns and the erratic ferry schedule.

However, I need to mention that there is no notice to inform the public that a ferry fare is not required from the island. From time to time, you can see tourists asking around where to pay the fare, and it doesn't help when the crew members don't speak English.

I have been commuting daily from the mainland to Penang island for more than five years, but not once have I seen the bosses observing the situation, let alone taking a ride on the ferry.

If they were to do that, along with some common sense, a lot of things can be improved and the journey between the mainland and island would be a good, pleasant one, for which the public would be more than willing to pay a higher fare.

A. HASHIM,
Sungai Petani, Kedah

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