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Following is a question by the Hon Tam Yiu-chung and a written reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works, Dr Sarah Liao, at the Legislative Council meeting today (January 18) :
Question:
Will the Government inform this Council whether it plans to construct a new route to the east of Tuen Mun Road (i.e. Tuen Mun Eastern Bypass) in order to alleviate the traffic congestion at the Town Centre Section of Tuen Mun Road; if so, of the starting point of the route, the districts it passes by, forecast traffic volume per hour, as well as the expected commencement and completion dates of the construction works for the route; if not, of the reasons for that?
Reply:
Madam President,
Following completion of the Northwest New Territories Traffic and Infrastructure Review 2004 (the Review), Government has worked out three possible long-term traffic infrastructure development options. Each option comprises different new highway packages. One of the options includes Tuen Mun Eastern Bypass (the Bypass) as a component. According to the initial concept, the Bypass will be a two-lane dual carriageway between Lam Tei and the town centre of Tuen Mun. Its approximate maximum capacity will be 78,000 vehicle trips per day. The traffic flow on the Bypass will depend on whether and when new roads connecting to the Bypass will be constructed. Therefore, we are not able to forecast the traffic flow on the Bypass at the present stage.
As we have explained to the Panel on Transport of the Legislative Council when reporting on the outcome of the Review, the review results show that the existing road networks in Northwest New Territories together with the planned road projects in the region should be able to cope with the traffic demand up to 2016. Therefore, there is no need to complete any new highways in the three options before then. Since each proposed option will achieve different transport results, the decision on which option and road packages to pursue, and the implementation programme should best be made on the basis of the location, scope and pace of the major development proposals in Northwest New Territories and Lantau, and the traffic that they will generate. As there are still uncertainties as regards the respective assumptions, such as the locations, development modes and implementation timetables of the Northwest New Territories Strategic Growth Areas, the Logistic Park on Lantau and the new container terminal, we are not in a position to make a decision on the choice of highway packages (including the Bypass) and their implementation timetable at this stage.
Nevertheless, to ensure timely implementation of the required highway packages in future, we have allocated resources for carrying out investigation and studies on the possible new highway packages, including the Bypass, such that, once the way forward for the proposed developments becomes clear, we will be able to implement the best option as soon as possible.
On the other hand, in order to relieve the traffic pressure at the Town Centre Section of Tuen Mun Road, we are taking forward several short-term traffic improvement measures. Some of those measures have already been completed. For medium-term measures, we will widen the section of Tuen Mun Road near Tsing Tin Interchange from the existing two lanes to three lanes for each direction. We expect the widening works to be completed by 2008. At the same time, we have commissioned a consultancy study to look at possible traffic improvement works at the Town Centre Section of Tuen Mun Road. We expect the study to be completed by mid-2006.
Ends/Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Issued at HKT 14:21
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