PENANG, 20 Jan 2009: Visitors to the World Heritage site in Georgetown can enjoy a free bus ride in the area ride starting 23 Jan.
Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng said the service known as the Central Area Transit (CAT) would be operated by Rapid Penang Sdn Bhd (RapidPenang).
“Visitors can get to see the heritage site, shopping complexes, tourism spots and the Raja Tun Uda Ferry Terminal.
“We expect the service will attract more tourists to Georgetown as it will facilitate their movement in the city centre,” he told reporters after receiving RapidPenang chief executive officer Azhar Ahmad at his office here today.
Lim said there would be 19 CAT bus stops along the route and the bus would leave every 15 minutes.
Azhar said RapidPenang would introduce 15 new routes, of which 14 on the mainland and another on the island, next month.
“The new route on the island will be from the city centre to the Bayan Lepas International airport to cater to the growing demand from the public,” he said.
Meanwhile, Lim said the state government welcomed the launch of the AirAsia Penang-Macau route starting 1 March as it would promote tourism in the state.
On the pre-war shophouses fire in the Campbell Street yesterday, he asked Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) to inspect the wiring of shophouses in the area to prevent short-circuit.
Speaking to reporters after visiting the fire scene, he said the state government would give RM500 each to the eight affected families while awaiting aid from the Yang Terutama Disaster Fund.
An elderly man was killed in the 6.30pm fire which destroyed five pre-war shophouses in Campbell Street – one of the oldest trading hubs in Penang. — Bernama
