Wong Hon Wai: Lebuhraya Thean Teik to be widened to three lanes

As reported in NST.

Highway to be widened to three lanes

By PREDEEP NAMBIAR | penang@nstp.com.my

 

SMOOTHER TRAFFIC FLOW: Lebuhraya Thean Teik will be broadened from Kim Sang temple to the Lorong Batu Lanchang traffic lights

GEORGE TOWN: TRAFFIC flow on  Lebuhraya Thean Teik in Bandar Baru Air Itam is expected to be smoother during rush hour  with plans to widen the highway to three lanes on both sides.

The project involves a 350m stretch from Kim Sang temple to the Lorong Batu Lanchang traffic lights.

Air Itam assemblyman Wong Hon Wai said the project was expected to start in two to three months' time, pending technical evaluation by the Penang Island Municipal Council (MPPP).

He said the road works could be completed by the end of the year.
Once the extra lanes were ready, motorists coming from Bandar Baru Air Itam on Lebuhraya Thean Teik would be able to turn left into Lorong Batu Lanchang without stopping at the traffic lights.

"We will be able to eliminate the bottleneck from All Seasons Place to Lorong Batu Lanchang.

"Now, we have three lanes opposite All Seasons Place on both-sides, but as you go towards Lorong Batu Lanchang, it narrows down to two lanes," he said, adding that 10,000 road users would benefit daily.

Last year, the MPPP added an extra lane to Lorong Batu Lanchang to allow motorists coming from Jalan Masjid Negeri and Green Lane to turn into Lebuhraya Thean Teik without stopping at the traffic lights.

Wong, who is also the state's town and country planning, housing and arts exco, said the road widening initiative was a condition imposed on developer OHM Group, which was building a mixed development project near the Lebuhraya Thean Teik and Lorong Batu Lanchang T-junction.

"When the developer asked for planning permission, we requested that it widen the road to ease traffic flow," he said.