THE annual Chinese New Year traffic snarl is back. It will be around for the next two weeks as holiday makers throng Penang Island. It is a most potent reminder how much we need better public transport. Coincidentally, there were three articles on Rapid Penang last week:

• Rapid Penang will receive RM120mil for new depots, hubs and 200 buses for 2011. The allocation comes under the Government Transformation Programme's Urban Public Transport National Key Results Area initiative, aimed at improving public transportation outside of Klang Valley. Read here.
• Yap Soo Huey argues that better public transportation in Penang is only a matter of time, and that perhaps what is standing in the way is the mindset of Penangites' themselves. Read here.
• A tourist writes to a major daily newspaper offering suggestions on improving bus services, including installing bus stops with route numbers clearly labelled and producing street maps. Read here.

Top engineering firm boss breaks back in Penang

Stewart Graham, the top man in Highlands-based engineering company Gael Force, broke his back while holidaying in Penang. The incident happened while he was on a moto crosser, and was thrown at "full force" off his bike, landing on a broken branch. Gael Force managing director David Guthrie said, "He has pulled through a successful operation. He hopes to be back on his feet in a few days time and hopes to continue his trip." Read here.

Graham kept followers up to date on his condition via his blog. "The broken back was dangerously unstable as the vertibrae was 'burst'," he wrote. "This means that the bone was shot to pieces and the fragments were at risk of going walk about. Out from the spine would be bad enough but one fragment was pressing into the spinal chord." Graham has sailed around the world for 18 years with his wife on his yacht. Gael Force was founded in 1983 and now employs 120 people, manufacturing equipment for maritime companies. Read here.

Other news

• Syariah judge accused of khalwat: A Penang Syariah High Court judge is being charged with committing close proximity (or khalwat) with a female financial adviser at a government quarters on December 5 last year. Read here.
• Kyzen opens new expanded facility in Penang, Malaysia: Kyzen, a world leading provider of environmentally responsible precision cleaning products for electronics and high-technology manufacturing operations, has relocated its Asia Headquarters to a new, larger facility. Read here.
• Umno rep slammed over tourism booklet: Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng has lashed out at an Umno assemblyperson for trying to create racial tension among the different ethnic groups in the state. Read here. 
• Batu Kawan Development: The Penang State developer, the Property Division of Penang Development Corporation (PDC) is paying close attention to the development of Batu Kawan Township. Read here.
• Night of camaraderie for chefs: Two hundred members of the Penang Chef Association were treated to a hot and spicy buffet dinner at the Grand Ballroom of the Gurney Resort Hotel recently. Read here.

For more news on Penang, please click through to iGT NetBuzz Jan 31 to Feb 6, 2011 here. For daily updates, "like" iGeorgeTown on Facebook or join us on Twitter.

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