Penang Hill Train Woes Again

June 8, 2011 at 3:13 pm

There is a myth that things always happen in threes. Whether it is true or not, the new Penang Hill funicular train service has broken down for the third time since reopening on 25th April this year. The first breakdown was due to stray dogs crossing the track that resulted in a mechanical failure, while the second occurred on 4th June, just a few days before its third breakdown.

While we did highlight this issue with the train during the first breakdown, we did express our hopes that the train service would improve in the long run. From the looks of it, the service still has some way to go before visitors can expect a smooth ride up and down the hill.

The hill railway seems to have garnered a lot of scrunity, especially from various authorities. It is rather surprising because it was never high on anyone’s priority list. Conspiracy theorists would have a field day debating that the newfound attention on the weaknesses of the hill railway is somehow linked to politics, but perhaps the simplest reason that many people are more concerned about the hill railway is because RM73 million has been spent to improve it. If so much money has been spent in improvement and the service ends up with more disruptions, then it cannot be considered an improvement at all, can it?

But in conclusion, we believe that these are just mere teething problems and the hill railway will be up and running in tip top shape once they are all ironed out. In the meantime, shall we take bets on when the next disruption will occur?

Tell us what YOU think.

Read the full article below:
The Penang Hill funicular train has broken down again, the third time in more than a month following its reopening on April 25 after a RM73 million upgrade.

The first time, it experienced a mechanical failure caused by a group of dogs trespassing into the rails eight days the service reopened in early May while the second breakdown was due to mechanical problems on Saturday.

Today, the service came to a halt at about 10am, apparently due to a technical glitch, while hundreds of tourists were still queuing to purchase their tickets at the top station.

However, the 400-odd passengers stranded on top of the hill were brought down by jeeps and buses.

Penang Hill Corporation (PHC) director Datuk Lee Kah Choon said initial investigations revealed that the problem was due to the electrical system not working well.

“I have have instructed the mechanics and engineers involved to fix the problem as the breakdown this time is not the same problem as previously,” he told Bernama when contacted here today.

He said he hoped that the service would be reopened to tourists soon after the electrical problem was fully fixed and conditions were safe for the public.

Meanwhile, one of the visitors, Rosli Ismail, 50, from Johor, said he had brought his family to the foot of the hill at about 3pm but was left disappointed that such a thing happened.

“We did not expect this to happen again as I came from far away and wished to enjoy the beautiful scenery on top of the hill but a notice in front of the gate informed us that the train service were temporarily closed,” he told Bernama.

On Feb 22, the 87-year-old funicular train service ceased operations to make way for the upgrading project by the Tourism Ministry.

The new air-conditioned Swiss-made coaches, which can carry 50 people each, was supposed to travel non-stop between the foot of the hill and the station at the summit of Penang Hill under the upgraded system, unlike the old system where passengers had to change trains at a middle station.

Source: Bernama