Penang Hill Hawker Development Center...

Work on the Penang Hill new hawker centre is expected to start soon.

Penang Municipal Council (MPPP) building director Yew Tung Seang said a meeting would be held with traders currently occupying the old complex to discuss the temporary relocation.

“There are 26 lots at the current site. We need to move the traders before work can start,” he said, adding that a Penang-based contractor was appointed via open tender for the Penang Hill redevelopment project last month.

Yew said the site was to have been handed over to the contractor by Nov 8 but the trader relocation had caused a slight delay.

“We will negotiate with the traders for an amicable solution. We need to demolish the existing structure before work can commence.

“The challenge we are facing is space – where do we move them to? One suggestion is the roadside area near the upper train station,” he said.

Yew said the move would only be for a short period of four months although the hawker centre was scheduled for completion in six months.

“We want to expedite construction to minimise inconvenience caused to the traders.

“Hopefully, we can catch up with the progress of the RM63mil funicular train service upgrading project (expected to be completed by December or January),” he said.

The old tracks of the funicular railway may be used as pillars for the hawker centre to preserve the funicular railway’s history.

The centre will be built at a strategic spot to enable visitors to have a magnificent view of the island.

I understand the point behind this move, it's for the good of Penang tourism as well as the state image to attact more visitors. However, I do question them about the timing of the implementation. Why can't they do the same time as the train upgrade? Previously the hawker suffers when the train service was down. Now when it's about to complete, they want to tear down the hawker center? Really cannot understand this move and pity the traders there...

Double-decker bus for Penang a reality in making??

Syarikat Prasarana Negara Bhd (SPNB) will not cut corners in its spending to bring high quality double-decker buses to Penang next year.

Rapid Penang Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Azhar Ahmad said cost was not a concern.

He said they would ensure that the vehicles to be used were reliable and equipped with safety features.

Prasarana owns a fleet of buses in Penang, which are operated by Rapid Penang, a subsidiary of Rapid KL.

Azhar said the double-decker buses would be sourced from either Europe or Asia.

He said the usage of double-decker buses would be ideal for Penang, which was growing rapidly, as they could carry an additional 40% more passengers than ordinary buses.

“Double-decker buses have a proven track record in serving high density cities such as Hong Kong, which has been using double-decker buses for the past 25 years. These buses are also more cost effective to maintain,” he said in an interview.

Penang will be the first state in Malaysia to introduce double-decker public buses in high-density areas by end of next year.

I feel that this is a good idea, as long as it benefits the public transport users with not too high fees impose. Go go go !!!

50% off traffic summons OFFER !!!

Are you holding a traffic summon wondering what to do with it? Or you are having a summon tickets wondering how not to pay the exact amount on it? Here's your golden opportunity!

In a move to get errant motorists to pay their summonses and to reduce backlog, the authorities are offering a 50% discount to those who settle their tickets within two weeks from Wednesday.

Those who settle their dues between two weeks and a month will be entitled to a 30% discount.

After that, offenders will be required to pay the full amount of the summonses issued to them.

PLEASE TAKE NOTE: Road Closure in Penang 4 and 5 Dec 2010

Petronas Cub Prix 2010! ROAD CLOSURE IN PENANG this 4 and 5 December. Several roads surrounding Padang Kota Lama, will be closed to the public effective from 3rd December (Friday) from 6.00 am onwards and until 6th December (Monday) 6.00 am. The road closure is not only to ensure uninterrupted preparation to set-up the entire area but also with consideration of the publics' safety.

Folks, kindly avoid these roads and area during this weekend. You don't want to stuck in the jam for nothing! Take note please :)

PBIM 2010 Experiences

Had my first ever FM this year after joining 4 HM. I must admit that I didn't prepare very well for this event with all the work and trip mixing in.

Also me and my running buddy didn't factor in the slope of the bridge which really took the toll out of us. Thank goodness we managed to finished the race within the time limit and got ourself our very first FM finisher medal together with the finisher T.

Will I be back again for FM? I don't think so as we agreed before hand that this will be our only time of trying the FM to get the feel of it. It was really a nice experience personally for me. Looking forward for Starwalk 2010 now :)

Air Asia X to Paris !!!

AIRASIA X, the long-haul budget affiliate of AirAsia (5099), will start flying to Paris from next Valentine's Day, more than a year after getting the rights to do so.

The carrier will start four times weekly direct flights from February 14 2011, between Paris-Orly International Airport and Kuala Lumpur International Airport's low cost carrier terminal.

Yesterday, the airline announced that it would launch the route with an all-in-fare from RM499 one way. It is available for booking online from November 22 to 24 2010.

Travel period for the special fare is from February 14 to November 10 2011.This will be the carrier's second European destination after London.

The new route will be serviced by the Airbus A340 aircraft with 327 passenger capacity including 18 premium seats.

After announcing that they will be flying to Auckland, NZ, AirAsia X has done it again after much delay...Hooray! Now everyone sure will be flying !!!

Penang Starwalk 2010, HELP needed !!!

I'm seeking help out there. Any of you that registered for Penang Starwalk 2010 Men's Open competition category but are unable to do so, please kindly drop me a message. I was away overseas for 2 weeks and when I'm back and went for registration, the competition category is already closed !!! So if you or know anyone that registered for Men's Open category but unable to join the event, please please inform me so that I will be able to take his bib and join the competition category. MANY THANKS !!!

Branson to wear AirAsia stewardess uniform

Richard Branson, having lost the bet with Tony Fernandes on who has the better Formula 1 team, will now prepare himself to serve some lucky AirAsia's passengers, complete in AirAsia stewardess uniform.

"While Lotus Racing’s attention now turns to the young driver and tyre tests in Abu Dhabi, the team, AirAsia and their counterparts at Virgin Racing are busy preparing for Richard Branson’s inaugural flight as an AirAsia stewardess," said Lotus Racing and AirAsia in a joint statement today.

In the midst of the celebrations on track last night, Lotus Racing Team Principal Tony Fernandes gave Richard an AirAsia uniform and pinned an AirAsia stewardess’ badge on the Virgin Racing Team Principal and the two agreed how the bet would be settled, it said.

Tony Fernandes said: “There has been a fantastic spirit of competition between us and Virgin Racing all season, and one of the first people to come and congratulate us on the pitwall was Richard.

"We have had this great bet running all season and now it’s time for Richard to start preparing himself for some hard work and the likely pain of a pair of high heels!".

"We agreed last night that we will run an online charity auction for the seats on our Kuala Lumpur/London route to raise money for a charity of Richard’s choice and give fans of both teams the chance to be on the flight," he said.

"The date of the flight will be announced very soon and the aim is to raise as much money as we can for a good cause so the discomfort Richard will go through is worth as much as it possibly can be!" he added.

More details on the date of the flight and how to enter the charity auction to bid for a seat will be announced very soon. Lotus Racing and Virgin Racing failed to score any points in this season F1 but Lotus Racing's drivers have managed to finish better than their Virgin Racing counterparts. -- Bernama

Haha...I cannot wait for this.... :)

Sebastian Vettel: F1 Youngest World Champion

Sebastian Vettel has become the youngest ever Formula 1 World Champion, taking that particular title away from 2005 title winner Fernando Alonso, by winning Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The German Red Bull Racing driver speaks of his remarkable achievement.

‘I’m a bit speechless, to be honest, I don’t know what I’m supposed to say at this moment. An incredibly tough season physically and mentally but we always kept believing in the team and the car and I kept believing in myself.

Today was a special day all around. This morning I got up and just tried to be calm and avoid contact with people. As you say, we’ve only led this championship once, but when it matters.

I’m speechless, as I said, the car was phenomenal. The start was close with Lewis and we then had a bit of graining, but car stabilised from then.

It was good that Lewis got up behind Kubica and got held up, so I could make a gap but, yeah, to be honest I didn’t know anything unless I crossed the chequered flag.

(Race Engineer) Rocky was always trying to give me some advise, I was thinking, ‘Why is this guy so nervous? We must be in a bloody good position!’

After crossing the line Rocky said, ‘It’s looking good but we have to wait’ and then he came on screaming that we’d won the World Championship.

I have to thank all of the mechanics, all of the engineers…sorry, I’m making this a bit long!…all the guys in Milton Keynes are pushing like hell enjoying this moment and back in Austria, all the guys who have been supporting me from the beginning.

It’s unbelievable; I can only say things to all the people from karting in Kerpen and my hometown Heppenheim.

I don’t know how many times we’ve had a different leader in this championship. Ferrari were there, McLaren came back, Lewis was leading the championship, Lewis had a retirement in Hungary, myself in Australia and Korea and I think all of us had to go though ups and downs.

A tough season mentally, but sometimes you just need to be able to ignore what people are saying and get things done. I’m very proud.'

Congrats Sebastian on becoming the youngest Formula One champion!!! What a season and what a finale... :)

I'M BACK !!!

Wow !!! Finally I'm back to the real world after my AUS-NZ holiday...it was like living in dreamland and fantasy world there, with no internet and phone communication and only have my wifey with me, love it! I shall write more on the trip when I have some good time to sit down and relax....as for now, too many things to catch up and clear all the backlogs...just want to say HI to everyone out there, and sorry for missing out so many posts last month and the current one...