Bayan Lepas

Bayan Lepas
Town
Other transcription(s)
• Chinese	峇六拜
Queensbay Mall in Bayan Lepas is the biggest shopping mall in Penang.
Bayan Lepas
Coordinates: 5°17′00″N 100°16′00″E / 5.28333°N 100.26667°E / 5.28333; 100.26667
Country	Malaysia
State	Penang
District	Southwest Penang Island
Government
• Local Government	Penang Island City Council
• Mayor of Penang Island	Patahiyah Ismail
Area
• Total	151.7 km2 (58.59 sq mi)
Elevation	4 m (13.1 ft)
Time zone	MST (UTC+8)
• Summer (DST)	Not observed (UTC)
Area code(s)	+604
Website	http://www.mbpp.gov.my

Bayan Lepas is a town near the southeastern tip of Penang Island in Malaysia. Established as an agricultural village in the 19th century, it is now home to the Penang International Airport and a major industrial centre in Penang. Several multinational electronic and engineering firms have set up factories and assembly plants within the Bayan Lepas Free Industrial Zone, including Bosch, Motorola, Dell, Intel and Hewlett-Packard.

According to urban legend, the town was founded in the late 19th century by a family from Sumatra whose pet parakeet escaped. The Penang International Airport was opened in 1935, the first civilian airport to be built in British Malaya. For much of the town's history, it was an agricultural area, with rice farming a major source of income. It was only in the 1970s, with the creation of the Free Industrial Zone, when Bayan Lepas began to develop.

Bayan Lepas proper is surrounded by newer residential townships such as Bayan Baru and Bukit Jambul to the north, and Batu Maung to the southeast. As a result of the outgrowth of residential developments north from Bayan Lepas and south from George Town, the entire eastern seaboard of Penang Island has been urbanised. Bayan Lepas is well-connected to George Town to the north and to Balik Pulau to the west by road. The Second Penang Bridge also links Bayan Lepas with mainland Peninsular Malaysia.