PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

51 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

SMART PARKING SYSTEM

The city council implemented another
measure to reduce the number of cars in
the city and to alleviate traffic congestion –
the Smart Parking System. The system
allowed users to have real-time access to
the smart parking system and
management using an app.

Users can easily locate vacant parking lots
and make cashless payments using the
app. The system allowed motorists to plan
their journeys early and to seek parking
spots effectively so that they do not have
to drive around aimlessly in search of
vacant lots, thus cutting down the time
cars are making its rounds on the roads.

CENTRAL AREA TRANSIT

To increase mobility of residents in the city,
the Central Area Transit (CAT) bus service
was introduced as a free service for
residents to travel around the city
conveniently. The service is temporarily
suspended due to the pandemic but it will
be reintroduced in future during recovery
from the pandemic.

SETTING UP SMART BUS STOP

The setting up of smart bus stops. The pilot
smart bus stop was set up in Jalan Sungai
Dua on September 5 in 2019. The smart bus
stop provides wifi facilitiy, USB charging
ports, a panic button, a rooftop solar
panel, CCTVs and a digital directory. The
bus stop aimed to transform the whole
experience of taking public transport and
to encourage more people to take public
transport.

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SDG 11

Make cities and human settlements
inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

Based on the concept of creating an
intelligent, liveable and happy city,
various programmes and action plans
were implemented towards this goal.
Projects such as Mobility As A Service,
Green Connector, Back Lane
Transformation, Barrier Free Environment,
Repopulation George Town and Business
Improvement District Scheme (BIDS) were
planned, implemented and activated.

11.1 Access to adequate 11.2 Safe, affordable, 11.6 Reduce air 11.7 Inclusive and
and affordable housing accessible & sustainable green quality and waste accessible
green and public
Population in World Usage of Public Bicycle Waste Disposed at space
Heritage Sites Landfill (Metric Tons)
Open Space Area

Source : City Council of Penang Island Source : City Council of Penang Island Source : City Council of Penang Island Source : City Council of Penang Island
2019

Targets 2030

10 000 – 15 000 45 000 0.55 kg/capita 46 88

population in ridership of public waste disposed at Neighbourhood Pocket
World Heritage Sites bicycle
landfill parks parks

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MOBILITY AS A SERVICE PENANG SMART INTELLIGENT VIDEO
PARKING ANALYTICS (IVA)
The city council aims to turn George Town
into an inclusive city that is intelligent, liveable RAPID PENANG RFID
and happy so that it is safe, resilient and CYCLING CITY
sustainable for its citizens. Mobility is an E-HAILING
important element to ensure liveability of a WALKABLE CITY
city and this was where the Mobility As a
Service (MaaS) system comes in. The city TRANSIT ORIENTED
council introduced the MaaS with the Green DEVELOPMENT
Connector project as one of its components.
WATER TAXI
The MaaS is a comprehensive mobility plan to
move people while reducing carbon MOBILITY AS A SERVICE (MaaS)
emissions. The MaaS covers public buses, e-
hailing, smart parking system, walking,
cycling, Intelligent Video Analytics and in
future, water taxies. It brings together all
elements of mobility from the many
components under the Green Connectors
project to public transportation.

GREEN CONNECTORS

The Penang Bicycle Lane Master Plan with a
goal of creating 200km of cycling routes all
around Penang Island is an additional
complement to the green connectors project
for the city. The bicycle lanes will be a
combination of dedicated and shared lanes
that snaked through the city, through the
coasts and within townships for cyclists to
travel all around the island without
generating carbon. To further encourage
more people to cycle everywhere instead of
driving, a bike sharing system was introduced
in 2017. The number of bike ridership
increased in 2018 and 2019 but dropped in
2020 due to the pandemic when less people
are outside. The city council hoped to reach
a target ridership of 45,000 annually by 2025.

54 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

The city council aim to transform and make
full use of the existing public spaces in
George Town to benefit the people. There is a
plan to create 10 acres of connected green
spaces that worked as a green connector
within the city.

The Back Lane Transformation project
contributes to part of this goal. This project,
launched in 2019, have upgraded a total
seventeen back lanes with the addition of
green landscapes, installation of lights, and
removal of obstructions. These back lanes
were neglected, dirty and hardly used
pathways that run through the city.

Located behind the rows of heritage houses
in the city, these pathways were identified as
the perfect sites to be converted into
pedestrian and cyclist friendly paths that are
away from the busy vehicular traffic on the
main roads. This is in line with the city council’s
goal of creating a green and safe space for
the people.

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REPOPULATION GEORGE TOWN

CO LIVING AND CO WORKING

The city council introduced the

Repopulation George Town

Programme (RePoP-GT) to alleviate the

effects of gentrification. The

programme aims to bring people back

into the city and to retain residents in

the city. The George Town World

Heritage Site covers 400 hectares of the

island and back in 2009, it has a total

population of 10,159 residents.

The number of residents dwindled to
9,425 people in 2013 before dropping
further to 6,939 in 2019. The RePop-GT

programme aimed to draw residents
back into the city and bring its
population back up to 10,000 by 2025.

One of the projects introduced under

RePoP-GT is the purpose built residents
accommodations (PBRA). There are
two pilot PBRA projects in the inner city,
one is located in Kimberley Street and a
second one in Acheh Street. These

projects aimed to bring residents back
into the city and make it a compact
city for people to live, to learn, to work
and to play.

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BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT SCHEME (BIDS)

The Business Improvement District Scheme
(BIDS) is an urban renewal and
revitalisation project for the inner city of
George Town. It uses a public-private
partnership model to improve liveability in
the city through the upgrading of public
facilities and amenities while at the same
time, generate economic activities in the
area.

The local authority worked together with
business property owners in the area to
upgrade, improve and revitalise the
selected area.

The project focused on walkability to
elevate the on-foot experience for
pedestrians. The end result created a
safer and conducive street environment
with more pedestrian traffic due to the
lush greenery and wider pavement that
can be shared by both pedestrians and
cyclists.

The road carriageway was narrowed and
this improved traffic flow in the area while
preventing illegally parked vehicles at the
area.

The creation of this project are based on
universal designs with barrier free access
to ensure accessibility to everyone
including senior citizens, people with
disabilities and mobility limitations.

The project was implemented along a
850-metre stretch of street - Jalan
Gurdwara and within the radius of
KOMTAR area.

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PEDESTRIAN IS KING

The Pedestrian is King programme was
introduced in 2015 in George Town to
create an awareness among motorists to
slow down at zebra crossings. A total 15
zebra crossings were painted with traffic
lights to slow down motorists and to
create a safer environment for
pedestrians.

As an additional step to slow down
vehicular traffic at high pedestrian traffic
areas such as junctions, school zones and
areas near markets, zig-zag lines were
painted on the roads. A total six roads on
Penang island have the zig-zag lines that
provided an visual for drivers to slow down
and create a safe environment for
pedestrians.

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STREET ART

George Town as a UNESCO World Heritage
Site (TWD) does have unique historical
values of the communities that live along
the streets and alleys.

Street art in Penang has drown attention

on the city makers/urban planners for

creative placemaking. It elevates the

overall aesthetic value to public spaces or

street, revitalise neighbourhood and

promote economic prosperity.

Furthermore, Marking George Town

cultivate a creative city as an urban

regeneration strategy.

It is crucial for the city to retain on the way
forward to govern and regulate through
public engagement and promote the
flourish of Penang street art.

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ENVIRONMETALLY SOUND MATERIAL RECOVERY SOCIETY

Conservation of the environment has
become a highly important focus by
our city that relates to the very
foundation of the survival of the
human race. Penang Island as a
developing city face various issues
and challenges due mainly to the
rapid increase of population and
economic growth aimed at creating
a sustainable society is being
promoted.

The city council envisions the future
that is expected to be achieved
through the integrated efforts to
create a sound material-cycle society
and a sustainable society.

Our aim in creating a “sound
material-cycle society” where the
waste generation per capita to be
reduced and the environmental load
is minimized to the fullest extent
possible have been implemented in a
comprehensive and structured
manner.

Our plan is Regenertaing Penang
Island with community based inclusive
waste management practices at
source and end of the pipe by
introducing an Integtated Waste
Management Plan.

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SDG 12

Ensure sustainable consumption and
production patterns

5R REFUSE, In line with the city council’s green
Reduce, initiatives to create a low carbon compact
Reuse, city, policies and campaigns such as No
Repurpose Plastic Bags, No Single Use Plastics, Ban on
and Recycle
Polystyrene and Bring Your Own Containers
were introduced. The 5R system which is to
refuse, reduce, reuse, repurpose and
recycle became an important principle to
reduce waste.

12.5 Reduce waste generation through 5R 12.7 Promote public
(Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose and Recycle) Policy procurement practices
that are sustainable
Number of Shop Recycling in
Adhering To No Single Penang Island Number of Green
Product Vehicle
Use Plastic Policy

Source : City Council of Source : City Council of Source : City Council of
Penang Island Penang Island Penang Island

148 35 Targets 2030 30

Franchise Shopping 50% Vehicles EURO 3-4

Food Establishment Malls waste recycled

61 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

Sustainable Campaigns

Sustainable 5R Campaigns

The City envisage to integrate and
promote measures on resource
efficiency, the 5Rs (Refuse, Reduce,
Reuse and Repurpose), and other
issues in a holistic manner, taking into
account the lifecycle approach and
the environmental, economic and
social aspects of sustainable
development.

Our city has implemented "Say No To
Plastic ” aimed at consumers in
cooperation with many private sector
companies in supermarkets and
commercial outlets across the island
mainly in order to increase the public’s
awareness of and call their action to
practice the Bring Your Own Bag
(BYOB) and Bring Your Own Container
(BYOC) initiatives.

We also invite communities to become
partner to constantly provide
information on and encourage people
to implement the 5Rs and other
activities toward a sound material-
cycle society.
regenerate

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SDG 13

Take urgent action to combat climate
change and its impacts

The average annual temperature The city has set the goal of reducing
greenhouse gas emission intensity and also
working towards stabilizing carbon
emission by adapting an holistic climathon

adaptation plan. This climate change
strategy address mitigation of greenhouse
gas emission and also outlines our local
efforts to address lower carbon footprint.

Pic Source : Penang Institute Urban Transport

Source : Malaysian Meteorogical 195 km bicycle lane x 6kg CO2 x 365 days
Department = 427 050 kg CO2 / 427.05 tonne CO2

Trees For Life Programmes

49 879 trees x 1,000kg CO2
= 49 879 000 kg CO2/ 49 879 tonne CO2

Green Space Area National / Botanial Park

35 579.37 acre x 2 600 kg CO2 7,738.11 acre x 2 600 kg CO2
= 92 506 362 kg CO2/ 92 506.36 tonne CO2 = 20,119,086 kg CO2 / 20,119.08 tonne CO2

Green Building Index Waste Recycling
112,846.74 kg x 586.531 kg CO2
35 buildings (12,325,998.70 sq. feet x 0.0027 tonne CO2) = 66,188,111.26 kg CO2/ 66,188.11 tonne CO2
= 34,159,130 kg CO2 / 34 159 tonne CO2

Targets 2030

Trees For Life Urban Green Space National / Green Building Waste
Programmes Transport Index Recycling
Area Botanial Park 55 274,179.55
100,000 200 building
trees km 35 579.37 7 738.11 kg
acre acre 62,203
100,000 160,814
Reduction CO2 (tonne)

438 92,506.36 20,119.08

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Nature Based Solutions for Climate Adaptation

The city council, in collaboration with Think
City, participated in the EIT-Climate KIC’s
Global Climathon Awards and won the First
Place in the Global Climathon Global
Awards – Cities Award for its Nature Based
Solutions for Climate Adaptation.

The nature based solutions for climate
adaptation programme for the urban areas
of Penang Island is predicted to be an
effective strategy to reduce temperatures in
the city through shade from trees,
evapotranspiration, enhancing wind flows
and a combination of green spaces with
water surfaces. Additionally, the
programme will lead to the creation of
more recreational spaces that brings about
ecological benefits to the island as a whole.

The goal is to introduce more trees and
greenery to urban Penang through built
projects such as connected canopies, tree-
lined streets, the back lanes transformation
project, urban farming project, the creation
of pocket parks, introduction of rooftop
gardens and the creation of swales and
infiltration wells to absorb runoff water.

At the same time, strategies such as school
programmes and knowledge transfer
platforms are introduced to improve
community readiness and encourage
stakeholders’ involvement.

The ultimate goal of the plan is to reduce
the temperatures by 1.5º Celsius in urban
areas.

64 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

GREEN BUILDING INDEX (GBI)

The use of the Green Building Index (GBI)
rating tool serves as an important
component of creating pockets of low
carbon development on the island.
Incentives were introduced for GBI rated
buildings so that every building constructed
has less impact on the environment. Buildings
with GBI Gold and Platinum-rated buildings
were given two-third rebate on development
charges. If these buildings continue to renew
and sustain the status, they will be given full
rebate on assessment tax for first three years.
There are now 35 GBI certified buildings in
Penang island. The increasing number of GBI
certified buildings has reduced carbon
dioxide emission in the city.

The city council is now constructing the first
ever triple net zero building, a transit centre
for the homeless, which will be GBI rated.

65 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

Disaster Risk Management Plan

As a tropical coastal city, Penang
island is prone to floods during the
inter-monsoon seasons. Therefore, it is
important to have a comprehensive
disaster risk management plan. The
city council has drainage and flood
mitigation plan and system in place.

Technological advances meant that
the city council can implement smart
solutions as part of its disaster risk
management plan. An Intelligent
Operation Centre (IOC) was set up
with video analytics to provide real-
time alerts not only for disaster
management but also for traffic
management and public safety. The
system also collects data for analysis.

In terms of disaster management, the
city council has installed 10 units of
water level sensor at flood hotspots.
These sensors will send out
notifications when the water level
reach a certain level, thus alerting the
city council and the public of
imminent floods.

The abundance of rain on the island
presented a potential for water
conservation through rain harvesting.
The city council introduced a
Rainwater Collection and Utilisation
System (SPAH) to collect rain water for
usage such as to water gardens and
for toilets. Building owners are
encouraged to install the SPAH to
reduce treated water consumption.
Between 2020 and 2021, a total 20
projects in Penang island have
installed SPAH.

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SDG 17

Strengthen the means of implementation
and revitalize the global partnership for
sustainable development

The city council continues to strengthen
its global partnerships with its twin cities,
sister cities and friendship cities in working
towards similar goals of sustainable
development. Participation in the IMT-GT
Green Cities Mayor Council has
improved collaboration with cities in the
IMT-GT on their best practices
implemented under seven portfolios:
Transport, Solid Waste Management,
Energy, Carbon Literacy, Circular
Economy, Biodiversity, and Education for
Sustainable Development.

The city council has been able to connect
with other CityNet members to exchange
knowledge and to build joint commitments
to establish more sustainable and resilient
cities. It is through CityNet that the city
council is able to undertake city-to-city
cooperation and capacity building in
respond to climate change and rising
infrastructure demands.

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CITY FUTURE PROSPECTS

The future is moving forward
towards fundamental changes of
social economy and digital
revolution. Penang Island will
continue to innovate and
transform our city as well as
strengthen the policies and adapt
changes in business process
according to the expectation of
the local needs.

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Digital Transformation Plan

The future of urbanisation is a Smart City, where the city is equipped with Information
and Communications Technology (ICT) and emerging technologies such as the Internet
of Things (IoT), Big Data Analytics (BDA) and Artificial Intelligent (machine learning and
deep learning) to advance a city’s liveability, sustainability, and economy agenda.
Becoming smart is not about installing technology but utilizing technology and data to
work to make a better decision, navigate uncertainty and deliver better outcomes for
the city’s diverse community. MBPP has recognized the transformative opportunities of
the digital age for improving the delivery of services and enhancing quality of life.
MBPP’s enhanced strategic direction for year 2020 to 2030 incorporates five smart cities
domains which are Smart e-Governance, Smart Social, Smart Economy, Smart Mobility
and Smart Environment. The smart city transformation agenda of MBPP is translated into
five (5) strategic thrusts according to five (5) aforementioned smart city domains as
depicted in the diagram below that is driven by the ultimate goal of developing
Intelligent City, Liveable City and Happy City as well as to support Penang state
government’s vision of Penang 2030.
To improve efficiency, the city council is planning to set up a centralised project
management office called the Smart City Transformation Office. Among the key
initiatives include enhancing our digital infrastructure such as fiberization of the whole
island, data centre, applications and network.

69 CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

City Council of Penang Island is transitioning from digitalization to digital transformation
with the ultimate goals of achieving a Smart Digital Twin City. The Smart Digital Twin City
consists of a Virtual Real-World Model (replica) including roads, buildings,
infrastructures, transportation, communications, distribution networks and their
accessibility. It is also a comprehensive real-time information generated from Internet
Of Things or sensors, video analytics, satellites together with Big Data Platform. An
Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be applied to generate smart decisions and actions.

Among the benefits of Smart Digital Twin is it allows citizen to visualize the impact of
new construction before breaking ground. Initial responders can also run computer
simulations to prepare for potential emergency scenarios. City planners are able to
analyse better, respond to local energy and environmental changes. Furthermore, the
application assists the Traffic and Transportation Systems in planning, to prepare for
calamities and pollution control. As for telecommunication companies, they may
experiment different wireless deployment model to optimize coverage. Facilitating
business owners to find the best place to install solar panels and City planners to
analyse pedestrian patterns to improve parks and evacuation routes are another great
advantage of the Digital Smart Twin City.

The Smart Digital Twin City will enhance all aspects of urban planning and
management including design, development, operation, maintenance and
revitalization. Ultimately, the Smart Digital Twin will enable us to achieve a truly data-
driven city by 2026.

CITY COUNCIL OF PENANG ISLAND VOLUNTARY LOCAL REVIEW

Date Release : October 2021