Why I say "NO" to trams in George Town

Beach Street, clean and without tram lines. Imagine wires running across, the calamity ... (4 April 2010)


Although I have been very supportive of the state government's initiative to build three new expressways and an undersea tunnel in Penang, when it comes to its intention to bring back trams, I view this with great concern. In this article, I want to explain why it is not a good idea to bring back trams to Penang. At the same time, I am not supportive of monorails either (in fact, between the two, tram is the lesser of two evils, but it is still an evil that we should not consider re-introducing.)

The public transportation system for Penang Island

Apart from continuing our effort to improve on our bus (which the state government is doing an excellent job as it is), we should consider introducing some form of rail system to Penang. In other words, an MRT system similar to Singapore.

We need a subway system that travels underground in the Inner City of George Town, and elevated elsewhere in Penang. The trains need to connect George Town with satellite townships in Bayan Lepas, Paya Terubong, Balik Pulau and Teluk Bahang, to relieve the congestion on the roads and promote wider population distribution.

We need trains running on independent tracks. These will move people quickly from home to work place and be a practical alternative to driving. The speedy transit of rush hour commuters will allow Bayan Lepas, Paya Terubong, Balik Pulau and Teluk Bahang to assume the role of satellite townships, each with its own amenities and recreational space, thus reducing the need to converge on George Town.

The answer to Penang's traffic woes is a system that can move the dense population at high speed during rush hour (11 February 2013)


Trams are not fast enough to do the job of moving people from distant locations like Paya Terubong to George Town during rush hours, and thus will not provide sufficient positive impact on Penang's traffic woes. Moreover, as the occupy the same street space as other vehicles, they further worsen congestion. We have to acknowledge that the cars already on the roads in Penang are not going to disappear, and that it is impossible to further widen existing roads.

Trams cannot cover long distances at a practical speed. It will take a long time to ride a tram from a high-density area like Paya Terubong to George Town and back. Increasing the speed of trams will make them dangerous to other road users and pedestrians. Unlike buses, they cannot be diverted to an alternative street whenever a street is closed for festival processions.

Within the inner city of George Town, trams will pose a danger to our trishaws. Moreover, they will mar the beauty of our inner city with their unsightly wires, cables and poles. On top of that, these overhead wires will affect our various cultural processions such as Thaipusam, Chingay and Nine Emperor Gods festival. Our culture is a unique material asset of George Town that must be protected at all cost. The contribution of trams in relieving traffic issues will be insignificant compared to the quantum of sacrifice they demand from us.

I've seen elderly people scurrying out of the way of incoming trams while in Italy. Unfortunately trams were introduced in those cities without much regard of their detriment, and are now too costly to dismantle without jeopardizing the cities' transportation system. We must not repeat other people's mistakes.

Why don't we bring back trams?

It is true that trams once ply the streets of Penang. In began in 1890, plying a route from Jetty to Ayer Itam. Within three years, the Penang Steam Tramways Company has given up as it ran at a loss. The company was put for sale by auction in 1900. The Government stepped in to rescue it, but by 1903, the Government decided to discontinue tram services. Nonetheless trams continue to ply the streets of George Town until 1936. For details, read When Trams Ran in Penang.

There are lessons to be learned from our experience with trams. Those who argued that the tram failed because there wasn't enough commuters taking it, and that our increased population density will make trams viable. How then, do trams be superior to buses? Whereas buses can be easily rerouted, the same cannot be done with trams. If we are concerned about pollution from buses, we should consider introducing electric and battery-powered buses. But the better option remains that we consider a subway system.

If not trams, then what?

In addition to continuing to improve our bus system and perhaps introduce a subway system, one way to make the inner city of George Town more people-friendly is to introduce a travellator system. Travellators can be installed on the sidewalk of selected streets within the George Town World Heritage Site. Unlike trams, there is no waiting time for using travellators. They also allow pedestrians to cover larger distances compared to walking. As travellators do not occupy street space, we free our streets from further congestion and avoid disruption to festival processions.

I encourage the state government to consider my suggestions and reconsider its intention to introduce trams. I do acknowledge that trams are a good idea in many cities, but considering the cultural demands of George Town (our festivals, trishaws, overhead wires), I urge the authorities to find an alternative form of transit for the people within inner George Town.

My letter to the editor of The Star which appeared on 11 March, 2013

Response to Penang Forum

SRS Consortium and the Penang State Government provided a 42-slide response to Penang Forum on 22 July, 2016, rejecting the introduction of the tram in the Penang Transport Master Plan. This presentation slide is available in PDF format below.

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SRS Consortium and the Penang State Government provided a 43-slide response to NGO's Statement regarding the Penang Transport Master Plan on 5 May, 2016. This presentation slide is available in PDF format below.

View PDF

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