Tourism boost for Penang
Passengers of the maiden flight from Shenzhen Airlines to Penang posing with a kompang troupe after arrival. — Photos: LIM BENG TATT/The Star
THE Experience Penang 2020 campaign was given a boost with direct flights from Shenzhen, China, by Shenzhen Airlines.
The inaugural flight from the fifth largest carrier in China landed at Penang International Airport with 153 passengers.
The plane was welcomed with a water salute to mark the special event.
The new route offers weekly flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
Shenzhen Airlines customer management centre director Zhang Yu said the direct flights would further promote business and tourism on both sides.
“We have 220 aircraft plying nearly 300 routes with 80,000 passengers per day.
“The first flight from Shenzhen to Malaysia was the Shenzhen-Kuala Lumpur flight some time ago, ” said Zhang in his speech at a reception to mark the inaugural flight on Wednesday.
Penang tourism, development, arts, culture and heritage committee chairman Yeoh Soon Hin said he was happy that direct connectivity between Shenzhen and Penang had been realised.
“We plan to capitalise on the direct flights by exchanging strategic ideas to boost the tourism markets of Penang and Shenzhen, ” he said.
Chinese consul-general to Penang Lu Shiwei said travellers had been looking forward to the direct flights.
Present at the ceremony were Penang Global Tourism chief executive officer Ooi Chok Yan, Malaysian Chinese Tourism Association national president Datuk Albert Tan, Malaysia Airports airlines marketing senior manager Zainuddin Mohamed and Pos Aviation line station head Danny Ng.
~The Star~
Penang police ensure smooth year-end celebrations
Some 500,000 vehicles are expected to make their way into Penang island during the festive period, from now until after the New Year’s Day celebrations.
George Town OCPD Asst Comm Soffian Santong said police personnel were ready to maintain public order and ensure a smooth year-end celebrations for all.
“It will be business as usual for us as we prepare to maintain public order and safety in the state.
“We’ve doubled our operations such as traffic control, routine patrol and crime prevention,” he said yesterday.
ACP Soffian said they had launched Ops Christmas and Ops New Year, which started on Dec 18 and will continue until Jan 1.
“During this school holidays, there will be traffic congestions in several areas as holidaymakers make their way here,” he added.
ACP Soffian advised those returning to their village or spending their holidays elsewhere to inform the nearest police station so that the police could increase patrol at their housing area.
He said the public can fill up the forms at any police station near their house.
“For those coming to Penang, they must be more careful on the road and observe the traffic rules at all times to ensure their safety and other motorists,” he said, adding that the public should also plan their schedule to avoid traffic congestion.
ACP Soffian also advised motorists to be mindful of holidaymakers walking along the road especially at the popular tourist spots.
“Crime happens everywhere, so the public must also take extra measures not to fall victim.”
Over at the Penang mainland, central Seberang Prai district deputy OCPD Supt Mustafa Bidin said over 400 policemen have been put on standby at various hotspots to maintain security during the festive period.
“There will be extra focus at major spots such as Juru Auto City and Icon City, as well as at the St Anne’s Church where a large number of worshippers will congregate for prayers on Christmas Eve,” he added.
Supt Mustafa said based on past records, cases of fighting – among those who had too much to drink – are quite common during this period.
Juru Auto City managing director Gary Teoh, who has been hosting the annual Christmas and New Year countdowns for over 10 years, said they expect some 10,000 people to turn up for this year’s celebrations.
“We have prepared 3,000 parking bays and we have also hired Rela personnel to help us monitor the crowd,” he said.
~The Star~
Penang Hill Train service safe despite recent incidents: PHC
The Penang Hill funicular train is safe for use as the two recent service disruptions did not affect the integrity of its operation, according to the Penang Hill Corporation (PHC).
PHC general manager Datuk Cheok Lay Leng said the funicular train undergoes daily, weekly and monthly inspection and maintenance according to standard operating procedure.
“The funicular train consists of various components so we undertake strict regular maintenance and inspection to ensure it is in good condition and safe for use,” he said when contacted today.
“Comprehensive maintenance is done twice a year and at that time the funicular train operation is fully shut down for two to three weeks to enable works to be carried out thoroughly and properly,” he said.
Cheok said the two cases of service breakdowns within two weeks this month which caused visitors to the hill resort to be stranded were isolated incidents.
“Actually, the two incidents involved different problems, with the Dec 4 case attributed to human error caused by a worker pressing the wrong button at the operations place.
“Because of that the alert and warning button was automatically activated, causing the operation system of the funicular train to stop. Checks by the PHC team showed that there were no defects,” he said.
In the latest incident last Saturday, the malfunction involved a damaged seal of the hydraulic brakes of the train, he said.
Engineers and technicians took more than 10 hours to identify the problem and rectify it.
“We are investigating to determine how the seal could have been damaged just after two years when it was meant to last four years.
“The seal was made by a foreign company and this is the first such malfunction in the 10 years of operation of the funicular train,” he said.
He said the recent incidents had not affected visitor arrivals at Penang Hill.
After service resumed at 4.45pm yesterday following Saturday’s disruption, the flow of visitors has been like what is normally seen during school holidays.
“PHC accepts all feedback from visitors and we will do whatever we can to make the service safer and more comfortable. I would like to thank everyone for their support and patience, especially those who came after the two incidents,” he said.
On Dec 4, more than 500 people were affected after the train service was disrupted for more than two hours from 10am while last Saturday night’s incident left more than 900 visitors stranded. - Bernama
In support of inbound tourism
Visa has announced its partnership with Mid Valley Megamall. At the event, (from left) Ng, Tourism Malaysia Package Development Division director Syed Yahya Syed Othman, Tourism Malaysia Package Development Division Secretariat Shopping Malaysia head, Norliza Md Zain and Mid Valley City chief executive officer Daniel Yong.
KUALA LUMPUR: In support of Visit Malaysia 2020, and its target of achieving 30 million international tourist arrivals, Visa has unrolled a series of initiatives to promote inbound tourism.
“We have year-long promotions and offers in various parts of Malaysia including Klang Valley, Johor Baru and Penang. Visa cardholders can enjoy discounts and benefits at family attractions such as Legoland, Desaru Coast Adventure Waterpark, and KidZania, other outlets like BH Petrol and Swarovski, as well as hospitals such as ParkCity Medical Centre and Subang Jaya Medical Centre,” says Visa country manager for Malaysia, Ng Kong Boon.
Aside from establishing partnerships with such attractions, hotels and dining outlets, the company has also established tie-ups with major shopping malls to roll out attractive promotions in an effort to play its part in promoting Visit Malaysia 2020.
To this end, Visa has announced its partnership with Mid Valley Megamall in Kuala Lumpur recently on Dec 12. Being the world’s leader in digital payments, this partnership seeks to encourage tourists to use digital payment for their purchases during the festive season.
With this campaign Visa cardholders can make payment with their contactless card for purchases made at Mid Valley Megamall here and The Mall, Mid Valley Southkey, Johor Baru, to be eligible for redemption gifts. To sweeten the deal, when they shop on Friday, Saturday or Sunday and on the eve of public holidays and on public holidays, they will also receive eco-friendly metal straws and pans as giveaways for transactions about RM200 and RM350 respectively.
For the upcoming Chinese New Year celebration, Visa and Mid Valley will be introducing another campaign from Jan 5, 2020 to Feb 2, 2020 where Visa cardholders will receive Toys “R” Us vouchers when they spend minimum RM350 with their contactless cards.
Ng notes a tremendous growth in adoption of digital payment.
Visa cardholders in Melaka are also in for a treat as Visa has also partnered with Dataran Pahlawan Melaka Megamall, Terminal Pahlawan and Hatten Square. From now till Jan 2, 2020 Visa cardholders will receive a specially designed Barbie canvas shopping bag when they spend minimum RM300 using their contactless cards.
According to Ng, this is part of the effort to propel adoption of digital payment, which has seen a tremendous growth due to the introduction of e-wallets. Furthermore, digital payments are a more convenient and safe way to making payment, as no physical cash is involved and tourists do not need to walk around with a big amount of local currency.
“Many people have the impression that the exchange rate applied when using their cards to make payment in a foreign currency is not as good as what they can get at a money changer. However, this is not necessarily true, as the exchange rate offered by the banks are just as competitive.
“We are extremely excited to promote Malaysia as a tourist destination, especially to our neighbours in Asia Pacific. Based on our data, Singaporeans, Indonesians and the Chinese are the top spenders when they travel to Malaysia. During this festive period, we are partnering with malls frequented by tourists to encourage them to use their payment cards, particularly contactless payments, when they make their purchases here. These promotions are designed to help boost tourism spend as part of the Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign, “ Ng said.
~The Star~
Penang retains charm as top tourist destination
So much to see: Travellers taking in the sights at Lebuh Armenia in George Town.
GEORGE TOWN: Penang is a top draw for foreign tourists who see it is an all-in-one destination.
According to the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry, Penang’s culture and arts scene, nature, beaches and food are pulling in visitors.
Its Penang director Jonathan Freddy P. Bagang said the state was also special for its historical mansions, churches, cemeteries and pre-war shoplots.
“Many activities are centred around historical and cultural events that define life in Penang. It is also a spot for nature lovers and suitable for family vacations, with Penang Hill, The Habitat and Tropical Spice Garden a huge attraction, ” he said.
Jonathan said Penang’s reputation as a food haven with its delightful street food, also gave it the edge.
He said adventure activities like hiking, cycling in Balik Pulau and frolicking in the longest water slide in the world at Escape Theme Park were the other plus points.
Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) Penang chapter chairman Khoo Boo Lim said Penang still maintained its position as one of the country’s top tourism destination.
He said one of the key challenges was the direct flight accessibility to Penang, adding that the maximum passenger capacity at the Penang International Airport was still not good enough.
Khoo said while Penang’s street food topped the list of many foreigners, the state must do more to promote its restaurant and hotel food.
“Penang has an abundance of talents in delivering world class cuisine, ” he added.
Major tourists destinations such as Entopia by Penang Butterfly Farm and Penang Hill have been continuously upgrading their facilities in anticipation of a tourist influx for Visit Malaysia Year 2020 and Experience Penang 2020 next year.
Entopia sales and marketing chief May Ang said Entopia started as a butterfly farm in 1986, but is now a major nature learning destination after RM50mil was spent on it.
“While there is a 10% drop in visitors compared to last year, we have good support from cruise liners which brought in many visitors. We are definitely preparing for more tourists next year, ” she said.
At Penang Hill, visitors from cruise liners were waiting at the station to board the funicular train up the hill.
Among them was Ravendra Kumar, 55, from Rajasthan, India, and his family.
“We are on a cruise from Singapore. We were told that this (Penang Hill) is a place for nature lovers, ” he said.
Russian tourist Julia Kiryukhia, 12, and her grandmother Irene, 67, were also in Penang.
“My grandmother and I hope to enjoy our short trip before we head back, ” said Julia.
Penang Hill Corporation general manager Datuk Cheok Lay Leng said the body had spent RM38mil since 2017 to upgrade the hill.
He said several million ringgit would be spent next year to upgrade the upper station.
~The Star~
Nice place to wind down and watch the sunset
Beach Blanket Babylon’s laid-back seaside surroundings make it a great venue to relax over a few drinks.
BEACH Blanket Babylon – the only beach bar in George Town, Penang – is a great place for those wanting to kick back and chill out.
Its unpretentious and scenic setting under shady trees, coupled with reasonably priced bites and drinks, have proven enticing to many.
Daily Happy Hours from noon to 9pm bring good deals on a selection of wines, cocktails, and beers by the pint, jug, bucket or tower.
Outlet manager Harry said guests can choose from four types of red and four types of white wine, and pointed to Asahi as one of the more popular brews.
For cocktails, he recommends the refreshing Mojito with dark rum, brown sugar, fresh lime and mint, or Cosmopolitan with vodka, triple sec and cranberry juice.
The Girl in Green with vodka, pineapple, peach, midori, lime juice and Angostura bitters is equally tantalising while one basks in the gentle sea breeze.
“This is a great place to chill out after a long day at the office. Especially for those in the George Town area. Sunset hours are beautiful,” he added.
As Beach Blanket Babylon is located within the compound of sister restaurant Thirty Two at the Mansion along Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, guests need not worry about parking. There are ample lots on site, and it is free.
The venue has both alfresco and covered seating, with small and communal tables alike to cater to all parties. With a pathway down to the beach, some hanging swings, murals and strip lighting, one can also take strolls and selfies.
A deejay spins live music from sundown till late daily. It can be a mix of easy-listening tunes, hip hop, R&B, retro or dance numbers, depending on the energy of the night.
Guests who are feeling peckish can also complement their drinks with a good selection of bar bites, or order from the full Asian and Western ala carte selection shared with Thirty Two.
Beach Blanket Babylon can also be booked for parties and functions. Opening hours are 11am to 12.30am on weekdays and up to 1am on weekends.
Visit 32mansion.com.my for the latest updates or call 04-2622232 for reservations.
~The Star~
RM175,000 to repair, upgrade Tan jetty - Chow
A total of RM175,000 has been allocated through the Tanjong Member of Parliament’s office to carry out repair and upgrading works of the Tan Jetty off Weld Quay, which is now gaining popularity as a tourist spot.
North East district and land office assistant engineer Nur Fariza Othman said repair works on the jetty located at the George Town Heritage site commenced on Oct 21 and expected to be completed by Dec 15.
She said the works involved, among others, the installation of 192 poles as well as repair works on the 400-metre-long beam and floor structure.
“During the seven-week repair works we have cordoned off the area, but there are still visitors coming here to take pictures,” she told reporters here Sunday.
She said this after visiting the jetty with Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow and Pengkalan Kota assemblyman Gooi Zi Sen.
Meanwhile, Chow, who is also Tanjong MP, said the repair and upgrading works of the jetty were implemented after receiving complaints from the public to ensure the safety of visitors there.
He said Tan Jetty was gaining the attention of local and foreign tourists as a place to take pictures after receiving widespread media coverage.
“The increase in the number of visitors here makes the structure of the jetty unstable. So repair works must be carried out immediately for the safety of the visitors,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
Nasi Goreng Pattaya, or simply nasi pattaya, is a Southeast Asian fried rice dish made by covering or wrapping chicken fried rice, in thin fried egg or omelette.
Despite its name, the dish is believed to originate from Malaysia, and today is also commonly found in Indonesia and Singapore. It is often served with chili sauce, tomato ketchup, slices of cucumber, and keropok.
~wikipedia~
A friendlier Immigration experience
Immigration officers will be taught basic Mandarin and other essential languages in an effort to provide a friendlier service at the country’s entry points.
Besides easing communication, Immigration Department director-general Datuk Khairul Dzaimee Daud (pic) said the move was also made in conjunction with the Visit Malaysia 2020 campaign.
“As part of our ongoing effort to improve the Immigration Department, we want to enhance our counter service, especially at the KLIA (KL International Airport) and other airports.
“Our officers must provide a friendly service because they are our visitors’ first impression of the country when they arrive.
“Those who are stationed at counters will be taught a basic level of Mandarin and other languages to help ease communication, ” he said in an interview ahead of the Immigration Department Day celebrations today.
Khairul Dzaimee, who took over the helm of the department in January this year, said one of his focus areas was personal development for all his officers.
“For me, training and upskilling of our officers is a very important aspect.
“This year, we increased the training period for our cadet officers to four months.
“As for existing officers, they, too, will be required to attend intensive courses to improve themselves, ” he said.
He also spoke on instilling integrity among Immigration officers.
“My wish is for the Immigration Department to be an enforcement agency that is respected by all because of the integrity of our officers, ” he added.
Besides training, Khairul Dzaimee said the department would also beef up its enforcement operations.
“When I inherited the department, we already had a policy where there is no day without an enforcement operation.
“I continued that policy and we intend to increase it further.
“With the Back For Good (B4G) amnesty programme ending on Dec 31, we will ensure that on Jan 1 we will go ahead with our enforcement efforts on a massive scale.
“There will be no compromise for illegal immigrants who are caught after the programme, ” he said.
Khairul Dzaimee also said the department did not intend to extend the deadline of the Back For Good programme.
“As we are approaching the deadline, we see the queues at the Immigration Department getting longer and we expect this to increase further.
“To accommodate this, we have extended our operating hours from 5pm to 10pm on weekdays. We also open on Saturdays until 3pm.
“However, the Home Ministry has made it clear that there will be no extension of the Dec 31 deadline, ” he added.
The B4G programme was introduced this year as an effort to reduce the number of illegal immigrants in the country.
Under the programme, illegal immigrants are allowed to return home without punishment as long as they pay a RM700 compound and can produce flight tickets.
On the Immigration Department Day celebrations, Khairul Dzaimee said for the first time, the department would honour outstanding officers with medals.
The department would also be giving out a special award to an individual for his lifelong contribution to the department.
~The Star~
Malaysia records more than 20 million tourists in first 9 months of 2019
Malaysia saw positive growth in the tourism sector in the first half of this year, boosted by stronger international tourist arrivals.
International tourist arrivals stood at 20,109,203 tourists between January and September, an increase of 3.7 per cent, compared to 19,386,115 visitors during the same period last year.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi said the top 10 countries with the highest contribution of tourist arrivals was Singapore with 7,868,755 visitors, followed by Indonesia (2,792,776); China (2,413,956); Thailand (1,442,224); Brunei (929,789); India (539,167); South Korea (508,080); Vietnam (323,393); Japan (321,283) and the Philippines (317,294).
“Tourist receipts for the same period in 2019 reached RM66.14 billion compared to RM61.85 billion for the same period in 2018, indicating an increase of 6.9 per cent.
“The main contributors to the tourist expenditure were Singapore (RM16.3 billion), China (RM12.8 billion), Indonesia (RM8.8 billion), Thailand (RM2.8 billion) and India (RM2.5 billion).
“Per capita expenditure for the period of January to September also grew by 3.1 per cent from RM3,190.5 to RM3,289.3,” he said today in announcing the third quarter performance of the tourism sector.
Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Datuk Mohamaddin Ketapi left). - NSTP/LUQMAN HAKIM ZUBIR. The short haul market, Mohamaddin said, had retained its position as the largest contributor of tourists to Malaysia with a share of 68.7 per cent.
The contribution of tourists from the medium haul market was 21.6 per cent, while the share of tourists from the long haul market was 9.7 per cent, he added.
“The highest per capita according to market distance saw Saudi Arabia recording the most for long haul at RM11,394.4; China at RM5,301.5 for medium haul and Vietnam at RM3,356.3 for short haul.”
The minister also said the haze which had shrouded Malaysia and neighbouring countries such as Singapore, Thailand and Brunei had affected the momentum of tourist arrivals.
“I believe the tourist arrivals could be better without the haze.”
Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Musa Yusof said he believed that Malaysia would be able to achieve this year’s tourist arrival target of 28 million.
He said there would be a significant number of tourist arrivals towards the year end, especially in December from countries experiencing winter.
Malaysia normally records about 2.5 million tourist arrivals in Dec.
On tourist arrivals from China, Musa said Malaysia was still favoured by visitors from the country.
~New Straits Times~
NETS payment now available in KL, Melaka and Penang
Singaporean shoppers headed to Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Melaka will now be able to make purchases with their NETS ATM card.
The number of NETS acceptance points across Malaysia have increased from 4,500 to 7,400 points, and they can now be found in the three major cities in addition to Johor Bahru, said NETS and its Malaysian counterpart Payment Network Malaysia (PayNet) on Friday (Nov 29).
The service has expanded since it was first introduced in November 2018, when NETS said that Singapore consumers could use their NETS ATM cards in Johor Bahru malls like JB City Square, Sutera Mall and KSL City Mall.
Now, Singapore bank card holders who shop at KLIA 2 and Sunway Pyramid in Kuala Lumpur, Queensbay Mall in Penang as well as Makhota Parade and Dataran Pahlawan in Melaka will be able to pay with NETS.
The services will be available at multiple outlets, including retailers that are popular among Singaporeans such as Giant Hypermarket, pharmacy Guardian, medicinal store Eu Yan Sang and bak kwa chain Bee Cheng Hiang.
Malaysian travellers to Singapore may now also make purchases using MyDebit ATM cards, Malaysia’s national debit card scheme through 500 acceptance points.
MyDebit may be used through NETS' network of merchants at Bugis Village, as well as outlets like Apple retailer iStudio, Pandora, Awfully Chocolate and Salad Stop!.
The initiative was first announced in a joint statement in April by Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad and his Singapore counterpart Lee Hsien Loong.
EXCHANGE RATE "ALMOST THE SAME AS" MONEY CHANGERS
In an interview with CNA, Group CEO of NETS Jeffrey Goh highlighted that exchange rates will be competitive for Singaporean visitors who can now use NETS ATM cards instead of bringing wads of cash when they shop in Malaysia.
“So for example, when Singaporeans go to the grocer, and you don’t have enough cash, (this NETS service) gives them an option. It also gives them peace of mind knowing that we don’t charge them high forex rates,” said Mr Goh.
While the exchange rate could vary with every purchase, Mr Goh said that it was "almost the same as the money changers".
“For merchants, NETS service will bring customers to them. And customers (might) make bigger orders too as it's convenient for them,” he said.
When CNA visited an optician retailer at JB City Square, a Singaporean shopper who bought contact lenses with his NETS ATM card was charged with a conversion rate of S$1 to RM3.0248.
The rate was similar to the selling rate of S$1 to RM3.03 offered at a money changer at the same mall.
Singaporean Muhd Ismail Hassan, who visited JB City Square for a day trip, told CNA that expanding the use of NETS ATM card services to Kuala Lumpur, Melaka and Penang was a good idea.
“When we travel up, we don’t have to carry S$1,000 to S$2,000 of cash anymore. It’s more convenient for us when we shop at the malls in these places,” he said.
Mr Goh said that NETS is looking to increase the number of acceptance points to restaurants and shopping outlets in Malaysia that are popular among Singaporeans. He added that NETS is working with PayNet to offer QR code payments “within the next six months” for customers.
This means that Singaporean visitors to Malaysia, or Malaysian visitors to Singapore, will be able to make purchases via cashless payments services such as DBS PayLah via QR code transactions through their smartphones.
NETS was also working with partners in Indonesia and Thailand to enable cross-border instant fund transfers and QR payments in the future, he said.
Source: CNA/am(hm)
Decision on Airbnb next year, says Tourism D-G
Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Musa Yusof said to address the problem, the committee would continue to discuss the issue to find suitable solution. -BERNAMA
The task force on short-term residential accommodation, Airbnb will announce its decision by early next year, Tourism Malaysia director-general Datuk Musa Yusof said today.
He said the task force was set up to regulate Airbnb accommodations nationwide and would take note of examples from other countries such as France, Singapore and Japan.
“We will look into the issue. What we have implemented throu\gh the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry and the agency under the Housing and Local Government Ministry, is that we already set up a task force to look at what other countries have implemented in terms of Airbnb-type rentals.
“We expect to announce the decision early next year and it needs to be regulated. For example, in some locations, Airbnb accommodations are allowed but not in the big cities where there are hotels available,” he told reporters after launching the Visit Malaysia (VMY) 2020 Kick Off conference here today.
He said this in response to complaints made by hoteliers who claimed of experiencing a decline in occupancy rate despite the high number of tourists arriving in the country as most of them were choosing Airbnb.
Musa said to address the problem, the committee would continue to discuss the issue to find suitable solution.
“The concept of Airbnb in Europe and the US are different than it is in Asia. The Airbnb accommodations that I used to stay at, either in Europe or in the US, the guests stayed with the hosts, and we already have this concept here for the past 30 years and we call it homestay.
Homestay is more for the experiences while Airbnb is more of an accommodation. Only in Malaysia, the visitors are not staying with the owner and this will be regulated,” he said.
He said the matter would be looked at as a whole as there were several joint management bodies had disallowed Airbnb to operate in the condominium building as it was viewed as disruption.
Meanwhile, commenting on the conference, he said it was launched to further promote the promotional activities of the VMY 2020 campaign in the northern states. -- Bernama
Overload caused KTM server crash
KTM Bhd (KTMB) attributed “overwhelming demand” for ETS tickets that caused its ticketing servers to crash on Monday, frustrating tens of thousands of commuters.
The deluge, according to KTMB chief executive officer Datuk Kamarulzaman Zainal, came from the combination of demand associated with year-end school holidays, Christmas, Chinese New Year and Thaipusam, all of which was taking place from December until the end of February.
“We used to sell our tickets on a month-to-month basis but as we managed to secure a confirmed schedule from the contractor of the Klang Valley Double Track (KVDT) rehabilitation, we decided to open up the sale for the three-month block,” he told a press conference.
The KVDT rehabilitation is a massive project that had caused severe disruption to KTMB’s services running within the Klang Valley over the past few years as cargo, intercity, Komuter and ETS trains share either a pair of tracks and at work bottlenecks, only a single track.
Kamarulzaman said KTMB did its calculations before opening for the three-month block for sale on Monday.
“By our estimation, the ticketing system is supposed to be able to deal with the load,” he said adding that KTMB was also saddled with a “legacy” IT infrastructure that was purchased in 2000.
“It took up to 30 minutes to sell one ticket on Monday, and yesterday the time dropped to two minutes.
“We are truly sorry our customers had such an unpleasant experience,” he said, adding that the improvement was the result of several quick measures that were immediately implemented to address the situation.
Firstly, KTMB increased the bandwidth to its servers from 100Mbps to 200Mbps and secondly, it increased the number of central processing units used in its servers from 10 to 15.
For a longer-term solution, KTMB is embarking on a drive to embrace full digitisation of its infrastructure and services with substantial progress to be seen by the third quarter of next year.
“We already have a consultant studying our system so that it could be revamped.
“We expect to use ticketing systems that are on par with those used in aviation ticketing, as far as stability and reliability are concerned,” he said, adding that KTMB’s servers recorded nearly 400,000 users when sales opened, causing severe congestion.
Despite the chaos, KTMB still managed to sell up to 57,000 tickets by 10pm on Monday, with popular destinations being mostly north-bound, to places like Butterworth and Padang Besar.
A survey by The Star at KL Sentral yesterday found that a sense of calm had returned to the ticketing counters, with customers queuing calmly and orderly.
In Putrajaya, Transport Minister Anthony Loke expressed regret over Monday’s incident and said a substantial revamp of the ticketing system, which has weaknesses, was required.
“To this end, the ministry has directed KTMB to take remedial measures,” he said after attending a conference on bus rapid transit organised by Volvo Buses, Technology Depository Agency and Prasarana Malaysia Bhd.
~The Star~
Redevelopment of Swettenham Pier Cruise Terminal to begin next year
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 18 -- Construction work on the redevelopment of the Swettenham Pier Cruise Terminal (SPCT) to accommodate larger ships, will begin next year.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd (RCL) managing director for Asia Pacific, Angie Stephen, said the redevelopment plan had been approved while a construction partner and concessionaire had also been identified.
"At the moment, we are just tying up some last-minute loose ends and we expect construction work to begin in two to three months," she told reporters after the annual docking of RCL's 'Quantum of the Seas' cruise ship at SPCT here today.
She added that RCL expects construction to take about 12 months - this follows the signing of a joint-venture agreement in September last year between Penang Port Sdn Bhd (PPSB) and RCL to redevelop the SPCT for the purposes of accommodating larger ships.
The redevelopment will see the SPCT’s existing 400 metre (m) berth extended by 220m, and the addition of a 118m-long dolphin.
It is anticipated that this will enable the terminal to handle two mega-sized cruise ships simultaneously on its outer berths, along with one small ship and one medium-sized ship on its inner berths.
One of the biggest barriers faced in growing the cruise tourism industry in South East Asia was the lack of ports for cruise ships to dock at, Stephen observed, explaining that RCL's ships were getting bigger and to improve the passenger experience, the group preferred to dock at destinations compared to dropping anchor away from shore.
"So I think Penang is a step ahead of many other places in terms of having available infrastructure," she said, adding that cruise tourism had a lot of potential in the region owing to reports that less than one per cent of Asians were exposed to cruising.
-- BERNAMA
Common signs
BUKA
Open
TUTUP
Closed
MASUK
Entrance
KELUAR
Exit
TOLAK
Push
TARIK
Pull
TANDAS
Toilet
LELAKI
Men
WANITA / PEREMPUAN
Women
DILARANG MASUK
No Entry
DILARANG MEROKOK
No Smoking
JALAN SEHALA
One way traffic
World's longest tube water slide at Escape theme park in Penang is now open
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 9 -- The world's longest tube water slide at the Escape theme park in Teluk Bahang here is now open to the public.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow said for years, Escape theme park has been the leading tourist attraction in Penang and the opening of the new attraction of the 1,111 metre-long water slide will further strengthen its position as number one theme park in Malaysia.
He said a study conducted by Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) recently revealed that 10.9 per cent of international and domestic tourists came to Penang to visit Escape.
“The study shows a remarkable statistic and testament to the importance of Escape to both Penang and Malaysia's tourism growth ambitions,” he said at the official opening of Escape phase 3 - Gravityplay and the Guinness World Records Longest Tube Water Slide here today.
Chow said that the Penang Immigration Department's statistic also showed that the number of visitor arrivals recorded from January to August this year had steeply increased by 207.7 per cent to 89,535 from only 29,101 recorded over the corresponding period of last year.
Also present at the opening ceremony was Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng, senator Lim Hui Ying and Penang Escape theme park founder and chief executive officer Sim Choo Kheng.
Meanwhile, Sim said today is the culmination of years of struggle to turn the dreams into reality.
“From conceptualisation to the support we received from the Penang Development Corporation, I am grateful for all those who have contributed to making Escape what it is today - a world-class tourist destination with world-record-setting attractions that generate more smiles per hour for everyone who visits Escape,” said Sim who also admitted having invested RM60 million in the last seven years to build the theme park.
Earlier, Escape Penang also inked a memorandum of understanding with GSPARX Sdn Bhd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of TNB, to build a photovoltaic facility that will supply renewable energy to Escape.
Sim said this initiative will make Escape the first theme park in Malaysia to go completely carbon neutral.
“At Escape, our eco-friendly parks co-exist with the natural habitat. We want our visitors to experience play amongst the beautiful terrain and rain forest we have here in Penang. This initiative with GSPARX will allow us to be fully self-sustainable and completely carbon neutral, how mother nature intended it to be,” he said.
He also added that the physical construction on an estimated 0.6 hectare of land will complete in over a year and will help reduce the monthly electricity bill of up to 15 per cent.
-- BERNAMA
200,000 expected at Penang Street Food festival on Nov 23-24
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 4 -- The third edition of the Penang Street Food Festival (PSFF) will be held at Beach Street and neighbouring streets on Nov 23 and 24 from 5 pm to 11 pm, said Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, today.
He said the two-day event would highlight various types of ethnic foods and selections such as Peranakan Bites and Desserts, Muslim-friendly Food, Hainanese Delights, Laksa Galore and Mainland food varieties.
“This year, we are expecting at least 200,000 visitors to the festival,” he said in a press conference here, adding that there would be around 180 stalls with food vendors from Penang and the mainland, compared to 134 stalls last year.
Meanwhile, Penang Tourism Development, Arts, Culture and Heritage Exco Yeoh Soon Hin said that the PSFF would coincide with the Penang Bridge International Marathon this year, which would be held on Nov 24, and the runners would be able to come and enjoy the food festival after finishing the marathon event.
“For this year’s Penang Bridge Marathon, we have participants from over 70 different countries and I believe that this would be a great opportunity to promote our local delights worldwide,” he said.
--BERNAMA
Penang braces for thunderstorms as typhoons chug towards neighbouring countries
GEORGE TOWN, Nov 7 -- Penang is bracing for severe thunderstorms from tomorrow to Sunday that can result from two typhoons likely to affect neighbouring countries.
State Welfare, Caring Society and Environment Committee chairman Phee Boon Poh said today he has instructed all response teams to stand by in terms of equipment, vehicles, logistics and manpower.
He said Typhoon Nakri is expected to make landfall in Vietnam on Saturday and Typhoon Matmo is likely to affect Myanmar and Bangladesh tomorrow.
“The two typhoons are expected to create anomalous situations in Penang,” he said.
-- BERNAMA
