The speed limit on Penang Bridge is 80kph but some motorists still drive too fast. — Filepic
When the letter “Keep Penang Bridge jam-free” was published in The Star on April 1, 2016, for one week, I sensed greater police presence on the bridge.
But once that week was over, it was back to square one.
Since then, there have been a number of crashes and breakdowns on the bridge, causing untold misery to thousands caught in the traffic gridlock that ensued.
On Jan 20, 2019, two youngsters left a party in George Town and were returning to their homes on the mainland.
Many have viewed the incident as it was captured on dashcam and closed-circuit TV cameras – a black car lost control and hit a white sports utility vehicle (SUV), with the latter subsequently overturning and falling off Penang Bridge into the waters below.
It took nearly three days for the SUV, with the driver still inside, to be pulled out of the water.
The operation was conducted by more than 160 members from various agencies with the actual lifting of the wreckage taking three hours.
All fingers pointed to the driver of the black car as the guilty party.
But then, is that driver the only one who is guilty?
Are we really sure that the bridge operator, the police and bridge users themselves are not, to a certain extent, partly to blame?
The maximum speed on the Penang Bridge is 80kph.
But what is the point of having this limit if people still speed like crazy?
The authorities should never treat Penang Bridge as just another road or expressway.
Instead, the two Penang bridges must be declared “no-accident zones”.
To accomplish this, PLUS Malaysia Bhd and Jambatan Kedua Sdn Bhd along with the police must act like “good parents” and reprimand “naughty children” who break the speed limit on these bridges.
Like a family, there should be love, trust, knowledge and unity between the authorities and bridge users.
If not, the recent mayhem that happened during the morning rush hour on Nov 6 will happen again.
That unfortunate morning, there were crashes on both the bridges as well as on the North-South Expressway.
These incidents brought so much pain and misery, especially to those who needed to answer nature’s call at the time but were stuck on the bridges for hours.
Are authorities empathetic and think of basic human needs during such scenarios?
The sheer desperation people feel when they are unable to relieve themselves, compounded by the stress of being trapped in traffic, can be both mentally and physically distressing.
For how long will speeding on the two Penang bridges go on, with offenders never being caught and charged?
And when an unavoidable crash happens and gridlock takes place, why not stop vehicles from getting on at bridge-entry points immediately?
In other words, why not keep the gridlock on land rather than on the bridges?
If the bridges cannot be closed, then what contingency plans do the authorities have to help those facing severe discomfort?
Please realise that the Penang bridges act as the main artery of the state.
Anything that happens on these bridges leads to untold misery extending right up to both the mainland and island.
As such, what are the authorities’ plans to make Penang bridges safer 24/7?
SANJAY CS
Prai, Penang
