Zigzag lines for five more Penang roads

By THE STAR | 23 January 2020


Burmah Road in George Town was the first street in the state to get the zigzag treatment.


GEORGE TOWN: In case you see zigzag white lines on Opening roads, they were not made by a drunken worker or prankster.

They are actually to tell motorists to slow down because they are approaching a pedestrian crossing.

AS a precaution to prevent accidents, the Penang government will mark zigzag lines near pedestrian crossings on five more roads.

The five locations are in Light Street (in front of State Legislative Assembly building), Beach Street (near the junction with Bishop Street), Jalan Kampung Kolam (near the junction with Jalan Masjid Kapitan Keling), Penang Road (near the junction with Chulia Street) and Gurney Drive (near Gurney hawker centre).

State public works, utilities and flood mitigation committee chairman Zairil Khir Johari said the first zigzag was introduced in Burmah Road, just in front of the Malaysian Buddhist Association, in October.

“The public are supportive of this initiative but many of them are not aware of its purpose,” he told reporters at a press conference.

Zairil added that to promote awareness of this project, three educational videos had been uploaded onto social media.

“The videos will also be screened by TGV Cinemas in Paragon Mall, 1st Avenue Mall and a mall in Bukit Mertajam before the start of a movie as part of the company’s corporate social responsibility.”

Penang Island City councillor Connie Tan Hooi Peng, who was also at the press conference, said the zigzag lines at the five locations would be drawn up by March upon the approval of the council’s infrastructure committee.

“Our focus is on behavioural change. We want drivers to slow down for pedestrians.

“Two deaths have been reported at pedestrian crossings in Burmah Road since 2017,” she said.

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