Description:
------------
The semicolon as a statement separator has usability issues in general (not just for PHP, for all languages that use this method).  First of all, it is 99% redundant.  In almost all the code I have ever seen, there is a one-statement-per-line norm.  The rare exception is when multiple statements are put on one line (almost no one ever does this and it is discouraged) and when a single statement is continued to multiple lines (this happens rather more often).

So if you have a 10,000 statement program (excluding blocks or whatever), you must remember to place 10,000 semicolons.  Lack of any one of those 10,000 semicolons can cause the program not to run because of a syntax error.  All this just so that in 1% of cases, a statement can be put on multiple lines without the use of a continuation operator.  So you are spending 10,000 to save 100.

It seems to me that an alternate syntax could be developed that dispenses with semicolons as separator, and uses a continuation operator instead to signal the presence of multiple lines, something like >>.

Reproduce code:
---------------
// This example does not show a BUG, it merely demonstrates a proposed FEATURE using code from this site
class Exception  {
   protected $message = 'Unknown exception'  // exception message
   protected $code = 0                        // user defined exception code
   protected $file                            // source filename of exception
   protected $line                            // source line of exception

   function __construct($message = null,  >>
      $code = 0);

   final function getMessage()                // message of exception
   final function getCode()                  // code of exception
   final function getFile()                  // source filename
   final function getLine()                  // source line
   final function getTrace()                  // an array of the backtrace()
   final function getTraceAsString()          // formated string of trace

   /* Overrideable */
   function __toString()                      // formated string for display
}

Expected result:
----------------
Beginning PHP programmers get happy because they do not have to look at obscure error messages that really mean a semicolon is missing.

Actual result:
--------------
Beginning programmers waste 30 minutes staring at their code trying to figure out where the semicolons should go.  Repeat times infinity.