Saturday, October 1, 2016

CDP October Theme Day - ABANDONED

Abandoned but fortunately not forgotten, this piece of land with semi demolished buildings is Hin Bus Depot in George Town, Penang Malaysia.




"After World War - II, motorbikes were brought to Penang, where operations began in 1952. Alongside trolley buses, motorbikes were part of the post war recovery plan by the Georgetown Municipal Transport.

Hin Company Limited was one of the many private companies awarded by the licensing authority  to operate the motorbus service. From Prangin stand to the Northwest region of Penang, the bus  ran along the western seaboard to a terminus at Telok Bahang. Then, it was called the ‘Blue   Bus'.

The company owned a bus depot situated along Brick Kiln Road (known as Jalan Gurdwara  today). The 68 year old building to date was constructed in 1947 to house and maintain their blue buses. Built with art-deco style architecture, the depot had its heyday in the 70’s and believed to  be the most good looking bus depot in Penang. In 1973, when Koperasi Gabungan Negeri absorbed the company, KGN Hin Bus Co, along with many other corporations, was acquired by  the SJA Group in 2000 where the amalgamated link group was formed.

Amidst the changes throughout the decades, the depot withstood time and changes. However, it was left to wither following its shutdown in 1999. It just sat there and waited. Waiting for its moment to be basked in glory once again, so it sat shabby and broken under the brutal tropical weather until a couple of years ago. The depot came into the possession of a family who had yet to repurpose it. 

Hin Bus Depot is now reviving with the aim of becoming an international creative hub. Hoping that once again, people from every nook of the globe get to appreciate its timeless charm while exchanging cultures of the modern world through modern creative expressions hosted in this enchanting  space.  "
Today, Hin Bus Depot is managed by a small team of creatives, working together with the community to  sustain the depot as a space for arts and events.



The recent trip back to home in Singapore, took the opportunity to visit Penang in Malaysia with some friends. they took us to this wonderful place which houses also a restaurant  'Taverin In The Park '.

This post is for the CDP October theme, please click here to view the other entries....

4 comments:

Jim said...

Great theme day shot.
Sydney – City and Suburbs

BarbRad said...

That's a happy ending to an abandonment story.

Tanya Breese said...

wonderful!

William Kendall said...

Hopefully it works out.