Following is a question by the Hon Chan Hok-fung and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Frank Chan Fan, in the Legislative Council today (June 22):

Question:

     As at May last year, there were more than 810 000 licensed vehicles in the territory, but the total number of car parking spaces was less than 700 000. Some members of the public have relayed that the number of car parking spaces has persistently fallen short of the demand. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) given that last year the Government revised the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines (HKPSG) to uniformly raise the parameter for provision of car parking spaces to one car parking space per four to seven flats in respect of subsidised and private housing developments, whether the Government will, in view of the demand for car parking spaces in different districts, flexibly deal with such planning parameter; whether it has assessed if such parameter can cater for the demand for car parking spaces in the coming 30 years;

(2) whether it will draw reference from the demand calculation methods adopted by other countries (e.g. Singapore) for planning car parking spaces, and review afresh the existing calculation methods under the HKPSG; if so, of the timetable;

(3) given that I have received requests for assistance from quite a number of owners of commercial vehicles (CVs) regarding the persistent shortage of car parking spaces, whether the Government will, pursuant to its policy of according priority to considering and meeting the parking demand of CVs as well as its principle of "single site, multiple uses", add underground car parks for CVs in the existing facilities on "Government, Institution or Community" sites; if so, of the details;

(4) given that automated parking systems can achieve greater spatial efficiency for parking, whether the Government will comprehensively adopt this type of systems for public housing car parks and public car parks to be built in the future, so as to expedite the implementation of the smart city's mobility modes; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(5) as there are views that cross-boundary self-drive tours on holidays may become a holiday trend in the future, whether the Government will, when planning the provision of car parking spaces for large-scale developments near the boundary in the future, consider this factor and flexibly implement the aforesaid planning parameter for provision of car parking spaces?

Reply:

President,

     The Government's policy in the provision of parking spaces is to accord priority to considering and meeting the parking demand of commercial vehicles (CVs), and to provide an appropriate number of private cars (PCs) parking spaces if the overall development permits, but at the same time not to encourage frequent users of public transport to opt for PCs in lieu of public transport, so as to avoid aggravating the burden on road traffic.

     In recent years, the Government has been continuously pursuing a host of short-term and medium- to long-term measures to increase parking provision. Apart from the measures of providing public parking spaces in suitable "Government, Institution or Community" (GIC) facilities and public open space (POS) projects following the principle of "single site, multiple uses" and promoting the application of automated parking system (APS) mentioned in the question, we have also been designating suitable on-street locations as night-time CV parking spaces and stipulating the provision of a minimum number of parking spaces for CVs in the tenancy agreement of suitable short-term tenancy (STT) car parks, etc. Our coordinated replies to various parts of the Hon Chan's question are as follows:

(1) and (2) The Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines (HKPSG) states that the principle for the provision of ancillary parking facilities in residential developments should be sufficient to satisfy self-generated parking demand while considerations should also be given to the limitation of road capacity. For example, the number of parking spaces for private housing development recommended by the HKPSG is calculated based on various factors, including the number and sizes of flats, development densities, and the distance between the development and railway stations, etc.

     The Transport Department (TD) commenced a consultancy study in 2018 to review the standards for the provision of ancillary parking spaces for CVs and PCs under the HKPSG. The TD conducted large-scale parking demand surveys, including surveying the provision of parking spaces and the demand of residents in private and subsidised housing developments, and conducting surveys among CV drivers through questionnaires, to have a grasp of the latest local situation in order to estimate the parking demand of various residential developments. During the course of the review, the consultant also drew reference from the parking provision standards adopted by other countries and jurisdictions with levels of urban development similar to that of Hong Kong, such as Singapore, New York and London. Considerations taken into account by these places are generally based on the types of development, the standards of public transport services and other factors depending on the local circumstances. Considering that the urban planning, demand and supply of vehicles, as well as the measures for managing the situation vary among different regions, the consultant's recommendations were mainly based on the actual circumstances in Hong Kong. The Government completed the revision of the HKPSG in August last year, which has raised the number of ancillary parking spaces for PCs in private and subsidised housing developments and increased the type and number of parking spaces for CVs in subsidised housing developments. The TD will continue to regularly review the parking standards under the HKPSG every few years with timely updates, to tie in with the changes in social and economic environment, such as the future cross-boundary transport and transport policies, etc.

     The Government generally requires a project proponent to provide an appropriate number of ancillary parking spaces in the project according to the parking standards under the HKPSG. In addition to the HKPSG, the TD will also consider other factors such as the demand and supply of parking spaces in the vicinity and the actual traffic conditions when setting the parking standards for a development project.

(3) and (5) Apart from the provision of ancillary parking spaces in development projects, the TD will also consider different measures to provide a suitable number of public parking spaces after reviewing the parking demand in the area concerned, such as providing public parking spaces in suitable GIC facilities and POS projects following the principle of "single site, multiple uses", or providing parking facilities near land boundary crossings to meet the needs for cross-boundary travel.

     As for CV parking, the recommendations arising from the Consultancy Study on Parking for CVs (the Study) conducted in 2017 are being taken forward by the TD, one of which is the implementation of eight suitable sites for public CV parking following the principle of "single site, multiple uses". These sites include Amenity Complex in Area 103, Ma On Shan; Leisure and Cultural Complex Project at Tin Yip Road, Tin Shui Wai; Open Space cum Public Vehicle Park at To Wah Road, West Kowloon; and Sports Centre and Open Space at Aldrich Bay, Shau Kei Wan. The remaining four sites in Tung Chung, Tuen Mun, Kowloon City and Hung Hom are currently in the preliminary planning stage.

     When determining the number of parking spaces, apart from implementing the recommendations under the Study, the TD has also reviewed the parking demand of various classes of vehicles (including CVs) in the peripheral areas of different projects at other locations following the principle of "single site, multiple uses". Having regard to the current progress, it is expected that, starting from 2024-25, a total of around 5 100 parking spaces (for CVs and PCs, etc.) will be provided by about 20 suitable projects by batches (which have included the projects under the Study that have reached a more mature stage).

     As regards the suggestion of constructing additional underground car parks for CVs at the existing facilities on GIC sites, in view of the considerations such as cost-effectiveness, technical feasibility and the constraints brought by the existing facilities, the Government will mainly consider providing car parks in new GIC facilities based on individual project's characteristics, including geological conditions, construction time and cost required, and cost-effectiveness, etc. As to the provision of car parks for CVs at basement, in general, when compared to ground floor and aboveground car parks, additional costs and time will be required for providing CV parking spaces at basements because the parking spaces for CVs are larger in size and occupy more spaces.

(4) The Government is actively taking forward APS projects in suitable STT car parks and public works projects. The first APS taken forward by the Government at the STT site on Hoi Shing Road in Tsuen Wan was commissioned in November 2021, while the second APS at the STT site at Pak Shek Kok in Tai Po is expected to be commissioned in the fourth quarter this year.

     Regarding public works projects that provide APS, the construction works at the Joint-user Government Office Building in Area 67 in Tseung Kwan O and the District Open Space, Sports Centre cum Public Vehicle Park at Sze Mei Street in San Po Kong have already commenced, and are expected to be completed in 2025 and 2026 respectively. The construction works for the project at the junction of Yen Chow Street and Tung Chau Street in Sham Shui Po are planned to commence in 2023. As for the project at the Joint-user Complex at the junction of Shing Tai Road and Sheung Mau Street in Chai Wan, the TD aims at applying to the Town Planning Board for planning permission before or by the end of 2022. The Government will seek funding approvals from the Legislative Council for the aforesaid projects in Sham Shui Po and Chai Wan.

     The TD will continue to explore the use of APS as far as possible in their future public vehicle park projects and in suitable STT car parks, taking into account the site constraints, cost-effectiveness, etc. For future public works projects with public vehicle parks, the TD will invite the responsible departments to consider the feasibility of using APS at the planning stage.

     The Hong Kong Housing Authority has been liaising closely with the TD to learn from the Government's experiences in taking forward the APS projects. It will also actively study the feasibility of applying APS in future public housing developments with regard to various aspects such as technical issues, operation, management and future maintenance, etc.

Ends/Wednesday, June 22, 2022
Issued at HKT 12:45

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