On March 26, it was reported that Finance Ministry parliamentary secretary Dr Hilmi Yahaya had said that areas without adequate bus services in Penang would be given priority when the RapidPenang bus service starts in August

This is good news, and I hope RapidPenang would made a thorough check on which areas are in need of its bus services. I hope RapidPenang would not forget the areas in Green Lane and Gurney Drive.

However, I was shocked to read that Hilmi had said that the existing bus operators in Penang would be allowed to continue with their services to complement RapidPenang. Why should the existing bus operators be allowed to continue with their services, when there were so many complaints against them?

Why, in the first place, is RapidPenang coming to operate in Penang? Wasn't it because of the many complaints of the atrocious bus services from these existing bus operators? It doesn't make any sense at all that they should be allowed to operate when RapidPenang is in operation.

I had written about how bad the services of the existing bus operators are and had also appealed to the government to stop the existing bus operators once RapidPenang takes over.

It was reported that RapidPenang would operate 150 buses. Now, can you imagine these 150 buses plying the roads in Penang, together with the existing buses there? What a horrendous traffic congestion they would create in Penang!

Will there be enough bus stops and bus terminals for all these buses? As it is now, looking at the bus terminals at the jetty and at Komtar/Prangin Mall, chaos and congestion reign.

Will RapidPenang be sharing bus terminals with the existing bus operators? If not, will there be enough space and places in Penang for RapidPenang to build new bus terminals?

All these has to be taken into account if the state government wants to allow the existing bus operators to operate alongside RapidPenang. One really wonders why with all the complaints from bus commuters regarding the existing bus companies, they are still to be allowed to operate.

Yes, one wonders ... are there any hidden reasons behind this unpopular decision?