Penang Airport (PEN) to George Town
Rapid Penang lists exactly two routes from the airport, and neither is the one the guidebooks name. Fares are by distance, from RM1.40, and you must have the exact coins.
- Check the route number against the operator, not a guidebook. Rapid Penang lists two services from the airport: 102 to Teluk Bahang and 306 to Hospital Besar Pulau Pinang.
- The 401E is not one of them. It runs Pengkalan Weld to Balik Pulau and is the route almost every guide still names for the airport.
- The 306 is the one for George Town, ending at the general hospital on the city side.
- The 102 runs 6.00am to 11.35pm from the airport, every 75 minutes, and goes the other way round the island to Teluk Bahang.
- Fares are by distance: RM1.40 for the first 7 km, RM2.00 to 14 km, RM2.70 to 21 km, RM3.40 to 28 km, and up to RM5.00 for 42 to 49 km.
- The farebox does not give change. Have the coins before you board, which at an airport arrivals hall means breaking a note first.
- Every 75 minutes is a long wait with luggage. Check the time before you commit to the bus.
The route number problem
- Rapid Penang's own route list names two services from Lapangan Terbang Antarabangsa Bayan Lepas: route 102, to Teluk Bahang, and route 306, to Hospital Besar Pulau Pinang.
- The 401E, which is what most guides tell you to catch, is not among them. On the operator's list it runs Pengkalan Weld to Terminal Bas Balik Pulau. If you are standing at the airport waiting for a 401E you are waiting for a bus that is not coming to you.
- For George Town, that leaves the 306. Hospital Besar Pulau Pinang is on the city side, within reach of the centre.
- The 102 is the scenic one, running up the other side of the island to Teluk Bahang and Batu Ferringhi.
The fare
- It is worked out by distance, in seven bands:
- first 7 km, RM1.40
- 7.01 to 14 km, RM2.00
- 14.01 to 21 km, RM2.70
- 21.01 to 28 km, RM3.40
- 28.01 to 35 km, RM4.00
- 35.01 to 42 km, RM4.70
- 42.01 to 49 km, RM5.00
- Concession fares are roughly half of each band.
- Rapid Penang states it plainly: the farebox does not give change. Arrive at the stop with coins, not a fifty ringgit note fresh from the ATM.
Timing
- The 102 runs 6.00am to 11.35pm from the airport, and 6.00am to 11.20pm back towards it, at 75 minute intervals.
- A 75 minute headway changes the calculation. If you have just missed one and you are carrying bags in the heat, the bus stops being the obvious answer.
- Monthly passes exist for anyone staying: Rapid Preferred at RM110, Rapid Youth and Rapid Emas at RM55.
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