Aerobus For Penang?

When a small bustling island has a serious traffic problem and it doesn’t have the money for a expensive MRT or LRT they need to come up with a solution that will help ease the woe’s which the islanders face. Resolving such issues could lead to many new possibilities including more investors coming to invest in a island which is conducive to live in and has a creative enough government which they will have confidence to work with.

The new Penang state government in my view is doing just that. Considering the limitations that they have, they have put on their thinking caps and are looking for ways to improve the island for the islanders as well as investors.

I saw this piece of news on The Malaysian Insider which is a another testament that the state government are working over time in getting the traffic woes resolved in the most effective and least expensive way.

Aerobus International Inc, designer and operator of the aerobus transport system, has pitched its system to the state government as a solution to the perennial traffic woes.

Aerobus Malaysia Marketing and Development director Datuk Aripin Mokhtar said the system, which is far cheaper and more efficient than the Light Rail Transit (LRT) or monorail, can solve the traffic congestion problem in the island state.

He said the aerobus, which uses passenger coaches just like the LRT or monorail and runs on the elevated mass transport system, was not only cheap but also free from air and noise pollution, safe and provide comfort to travellers.

“The aerobus can run in-between buildings, can be re-aligned to run on winding stretches or hilly terrain areas.

“It is different from a monorail, which requires vast land, higher cost and is not suitable for winding and hilly terrain contours,” he told a joint media conference with Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

This is one of the many alternatives that the new government is looking for the island.Now based on images of the Aerobus one may wonder wait a minute, can this handle the load?

Well apparently it can :

12-coach aerobus can carry 20,000 passengers one way in an hour with a speed of between 70km and 100km an hour.

The best part :

The Aerobus company would bear the full construction cost of the system under a financing scheme to be determined later without involving any cost by the state government

How much does the Aerobus cost as compared to other modes of transit systems? (Taken from Aerobus Website)

I think this is brilliant work so far. Aerobus may not be the correct solution but its clear that the state government is working hard in getting the right solution for the island. Looks like Penangite’s have lots to look forward too!