Minutes of the 9th Meeting of
Traffic and Transport Committee (2012-13)
Central and Western District Council
Date
:
20 June 2013
Time
:
2:30 pm
Venue
:
Conference Room
14/F., Harbour Building
38 Pier Road, Central, Hong Kong
Present: Chairlady
Ms CHENG Lai-king*
Vice-Chairman
Mr HUI Chi-fung
Members
Mr CHAN Chit-kwai, BBS, JP
Mr CHAN Choi-hi
Mr CHAN Ho-lim, Joseph
Mr CHAN Hok-fung*
Mr CHEUNG Yick-hung, Jackie
Mr IP Kwok-him, GBS, JP*
Mr KAM Nai-wai, MH*
Dr Malcolm LAM
Mr LEE Chi-hang, Sidney
Miss LO Yee-hang
Mr MAN Chi-wah, MH*
Mr NG Siu-keung, Thomas, MH
Miss SIU Ka-yi
Mr WONG Kin-shing*
Mr YIP Wing-shing, BBS, MH, JP
Co-opted Members
Mr LEUNG King-yue, Alex
Mr CHAN Chi-shing
Mr LI Po-ming
Mr LI Wang-fung
Mr LUI Hung-pan
Ms WONG Mi-hing, Shirley*
Remarks:
*
( )
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(2:30 pm – 5:50 pm)
(2:30 pm – 6:30 pm)
(2:30 pm – 6:46 pm)
(2:46 pm – end of the meeting)
(2:30 pm – 5:27 pm)
(2:35 pm – end of the meeting)
(2:30 pm – 6:38 pm)
(3:10 pm – end of the meeting)
(4:03 pm – end of the meeting)
(2:40 pm – end of the meeting)
(2:30 pm – 6:25 pm)
(6:17 pm – end of the meeting)
(3:05 pm – end of the meeting)
(2:30 pm – 6:02 pm)
(2:52 pm – end of the meeting)
(3:15 pm – 6:48 pm)
Members that attended the whole meeting
The time of attendance of the Member
1
Guests
Item 4
Mr CHIU Cheuk-siu
Mr YU Hing-wai
Mr WONG Tsan-kwong
Item 5
Mr LAM Wai-chuen, Eddie
Item 6
Mr CHAN Yu-yuen, Chris
Mr CHEUNG Mun-kit
Mr POON Wing-hong
Ms Carmen CHU
Mr Brad FONG
Item 7
Mr CHEUNG Chi-yeung, Fabian
Item 8
Ms YEUNG Lok-kei, Kiki
Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai
Mr CHAN Kwong-ming
Item 9
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Item 10
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Item 11
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
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Senior Engineer 2/Central Wanchai Bypass,
Highways Department
Senior Resident Engineer, AECOM Asia
Company Limited
Project Manager, Leighton Contractors (Asia)
Limited
Senior Engineer 7 (Hong Kong Island Division
1), Civil Engineering and Development
Department
Chief Engineer/Strategic Roads, Transport
Department
Senior Engineer/Strategic Roads 5, Transport
Department
Engineer/Strategic Roads 9, Transport
Department
Associate Director, Ove Arup & Partners
Hong Kong Ltd.
Assistant Engineer, Ove Arup & Partners
Hong Kong Ltd.
Senior Transport Officer/Transport Facilities
Management, Transport Department
Engineer/Special Duties, Transport Department
District Operations Officer (Central District),
Hong Kong Police Force
Officer-in-Charge, District Traffic Team
(Central District), Hong Kong Police Force
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
2
Item 12
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Item 13
Ms YEUNG Lok-kei, Kiki
Engineer/Special Duties, Transport Department
Miss LEUNG Cheuk-lam, Shirley Engineer/Central and Western 3, Transport
Department
Mr CHAN Kun
District Operations Officer (Western District)
(Atg), Hong Kong Police Force
Mr LAU Wing-fu
Officer-in-Charge, District Traffic Team
(Western District), Hong Kong Police Force
Item 14
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Mr LOK Chun-chung, Francis
Mr WONG Chun-hung
Mr Eric OR
Ms Penny CHUNG
Item 15
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Mr WAI Hon-kwok
Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai
Mr CHAN Kwong-ming
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Engineer/Central and Western 1,
Transport Department
Senior District Engineer/ HNW, Highways
Department
Operations Manager, the "Star" Ferry Company,
Limited
Public Affairs Officer, Citybus Limited/
New World First Bus Services Limited
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Principal Technical Officer (Traffic)/
Southern and Peak, Transport Department
District Operations Officer (Central District),
Hong Kong Police Force
Officer-in-Charge, District Traffic Team
(Central District), Hong Kong Police Force
In Attendance:
Miss CHOW Ho-kiu, Cheryl, JP
Mr CHAN Yun-man, Winston
Ms WONG Ming-wai
District Officer (Central and Western)
Assistant District Officer (Central and Western)
Senior Executive Officer (District Council),
Central and Western District Office
Ms YEUNG Lai-ching, Regent
Senior Executive Officer (District Management),
Central and Western District Office
Miss TSUI Shuk-ting, Yvonne
Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western,
Transport Department
Mr LOK Chun-chung, Francis
Engineer/Central and Western 1,
Transport Department
Mr LAM Shu-kee, Philip
Engineer/Central and Western 2,
Transport Department
Miss LEUNG Cheuk-lam, Shirley Engineer/Central and Western 3,
Transport Department
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Ms YEUNG Lok-kei, Kiki
Mr WAI Hon-kwok
Mr WONG Chun-hung
Mr LAM Wai-chuen, Eddie
Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai
Mr CHAN Kwong-ming
Mr CHAN Kun
Mr LAU Wing-fu
Secretary
Miss CHUNG Yeuk-hung
Absent with Apologies:
Mr CHEUNG Kwok-kwan
Mr CHAN Chi-ming, Lawrence
Engineer/Special Duties, Transport Department
Principal Technical Officer (Traffic)/
Southern and Peak, Transport Department
Senior District Engineer/HNW, Highways
Department
Senior Engineer 7 (Hong Kong Island Division
1), Civil Engineering and Development
Department
District Operations Officer (Central District),
Hong Kong Police Force
Officer-in-Charge, District Traffic Team
(Central District), Hong Kong Police Force
District Operations Officer (Western District)
(Atg), Hong Kong Police Force
Officer-in-Charge District Traffic Team
(Western District), Hong Kong Police Force
Executive Officer (District Council) 2,
Central and Western District Office
Senior Engineer/Central and Western, Transport
Department
Welcome Remarks
The Chairlady welcomed Members and representatives from government departments to
the 9 meeting of the Traffic and Transport Committee (TTC) (2012-13). She also welcomed
Mr Winston CHAN, Assistant District Officer (Central and Western) and Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai,
District Operations Officer (Central District) of the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF), who
succeeded Miss KEI Lai-ting, Grace and Mr Paul EDMISTON respectively and attended the
meeting for the first time.
th
Item 1:
1.
Members had no comment on the agenda and the agenda was adopted.
Item 2:
2.
Adoption of the agenda
Confirmation of the minutes of the 8th TTC meeting on 18 April 2013
The Committee confirmed the minutes of the 8th meeting of the TTC.
Item 3:
Chairlady’s report
3.
As regards the selected Minor Works Projects and their Schedules (as of May 2013), the
Secretariat had distributed the report to Members for their perusal before the meeting. The
Secretariat had not received any comments from Members.
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4.
To dovetail with the commissioning of the West Island Line and the South Island Line
(East) in 2014 and 2015 respectively, the Transport Department (TD) had formulated an
intermodal co-ordination scheme of public transport services for the two lines and intended to
consult the TTC about the scheme. The Chairlady agreed to hold the first special meeting of
the TTC in the Conference Room, 14/F., Harbour Building, 38 Pier Road, Central, Hong Kong at
1:00 pm on 25 July 2013 (Thursday) (before the 10th meeting of the District Facilities
Management Committee) for discussion of the scheme. Members were asked to attend the
meeting.
Standing item: Central-Wan Chai Bypass and Island Eastern Corridor Link –
Report on the progress of the Central Interchange project
(C&W TTC Paper No. 29/2013)
(2:32 pm – 2:46 pm)
Item 4:
5.
Mr CHIU Cheuk-siu, Senior Engineer 2/Central Wanchai Bypass of the Highways
Department (HyD), reported on the works progress of the Central-Wan Chai Bypass and Island
Eastern Corridor Link - the Central Interchange project. He said that major works carried out
in the past six months included the widening of the flyover at Man Po Street and the construction
of the flyover outside Four Seasons Hotel. The structural works of the tunnel link roads went
smoothly and the evacuation works was near completion. In the next six months, the structural
works of the tunnel and the construction of the two flyovers would continue. The eastbound
carriageway of Finance Street would be re-opened in the fourth quarter of 2013 when the
temporary road across construction sites would be closed. The HyD would put in place
sufficient traffic directory signs to guide the motoring community and pedestrians. In addition,
the HyD would resume the original traffic arrangements of Man Yiu Street in the first quarter of
2014, and the temporary link road would only be closed when Road P1 was completed. After
the resumption of the original routing of Man Yiu Street, vehicles travelling from southbound
Man Yiu Street would not be allowed to turn right to Finance Street, which was the same as the
present situation. It had been wrongly indicated in the figure near the bottom of the last page of
the paper submitted before the meeting that vehicles were allowed to turn right. The HyD
would submit an amended version of the paper to the Secretariat after the meeting for
rectification accordingly.
6.
The Vice-Chairman invited Members to discuss the paper.
Members were as follows:
Questions and views of
(a)
The Chairlady asked the HyD when the resumption of the original routing of Man
Yiu Street would be announced.
(b)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung said that as the open space outside Central Pier No. 10 had
been allocated for the development of an observation wheel, the pedestrian and
traffic flow in the area were expected to increase. He suggested the HyD
co-ordinate with the relevant departments for traffic arrangements in advance.
7.
Mr CHIU Cheuk-siu said that the HyD would resume the traffic arrangements of Man Yiu
Street in the first quarter of 2014. The number of carriageways in Man Yiu Street would not be
reduced.
8.
Mr Francis LOK, Engineer/Central and Western 1 of the TD, said that the TD had not yet
received the operational arrangements from the contractor of the observation wheel. The TD
would study with relevant departments as soon as possible upon receipt of the operational
arrangements and would study the possibility of altering the traffic and transportation facilities
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in the vicinity.
9.
Mr CHAN Hok-fung was concerned that the tailback along Man Yiu Street would stretch
to the roundabout when the street resumed its original alignment in which the length was shorter.
He suggested the HyD establish contact with the contractor of the observation wheel as early as
possible.
10. The Chairlady suggested the parties concerned attend District Council (DC) meetings
again to discuss the arrangements with Members before the operator of the observation wheel
implement the development plan.
11. Miss Cheryl CHOW, District Officer (Central and Western), said that the Central and
Western District Office (C&WDO) was actively in contact with the Development Bureau
(DevB). It had invited the DevB and the contractor of the observation wheel to attend DC
meetings to report on the latest development of the observation wheel and the future operational
arrangements. The C&WDO would convey Members’ view about service facilities for
transportation to the DevB. The DevB was expected to attend the DC meeting or the meeting
of the Culture, Leisure and Social Affairs Committee by the fourth quarter of 2013 to answer
Members’ enquiries.
12.
The Vice-Chairman thanked the guests for attending the meeting.
Agenda Item 5: Traffic Arrangement at the area north of the Hong Kong City Hall
in Edinburgh Place in Central
(C&W TTC Paper No. 30/2013)
(2:46 pm – 3:00 pm)
13. Mr Eddie LAM, Senior Engineer 7 (Hong Kong Island Division 1) of the Civil
Engineering and Development (CEDD), said that vehicles heading for the pick-up/drop-off
area of the Hong Kong City Hall used to go from Connaught Road Central eastbound via
Edinburgh Place. Later, it was proposed in the road works of Central Reclamation Phase III
that traffic be diverted to the west of Edinburgh Place, and the department was authorised to
implement the relevant arrangement under the Roads (Works, Use and Compensation)
Ordinance in 2002. The department had received requests from the public to maintain the
original traffic arrangement during the works and finally adopted the suggestion as the
relevant arrangement could keep the original features of Edinburgh Place. In order to
separate vehicles and pedestrians properly without having an impact on the environment of
the area concerned, the department proposed to place movable flower pots at Edinburgh Place
north of the City Hall to separate pedestrians and vehicles and to install pedestrian signs and
road signs at appropriate locations. He said that a trial run of the relevant arrangement had
been conducted early the year. The result was satisfactory and it was proposed to implement
the relevant arrangement on a long-term basis.
14. The Vice-Chairman invited Members to discuss the paper. Questions and views of
Members were as follows:
(a)
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Mr IP Kwok-him agreed that the department should conduct a review on the
relevant traffic arrangement, and stressed that the current arrangement had caused
huge inconvenience to motorists as they had to make a detour around the City
Hall when exiting from it and could not go eastward directly, adding burden to
the traffic flow near the General Post Office.
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(b)
Mr MAN Chi-wah asked the department to consider allowing vehicles to go
eastward after exiting from the City Hall no matter vehicles entering it from the
east or the west, so that vehicles did not have to take a circuitous route to the
General Post Office.
(c)
The Chairlady said that there were vehicle-pedestrian conflicts at Edinburgh Place
north of the City Hall, and enquired how the department ensured that pedestrians
could enter or leave the location concerned safely.
15. Mr Eddie LAM said that the department had placed flower pots at Edinburgh Place
north of the City Hall to separate pedestrians and vehicles, and would install pedestrian signs
and road signs at appropriate locations to indicate directions for pedestrians. In addition,
railings had been installed at west Edinburgh Place to stop vehicles from entering, thus there
would not be vehicle-pedestrian conflicts. He then left Members’ suggestion of allowing
vehicles to turn right onto Lung Wo Road eastbound after leaving the City Hall to the TD to
respond.
16. Mr Francis LOK, Engineer/Central and Western 1 of the TD, said that if vehicles were
allowed to turn right from the City Hall to Edinburgh Place southbound, the traffic flow of
the section concerned would be affected and it would be relatively dangerous for other
motorists. He replied that the CEDD might conduct a study on changing the traffic
arrangement for Lung Wo Road to enable vehicles to go eastward without having to pass by
Connaught Road Central.
17. Mr Eddie LAM thanked Members’ support for the traffic arrangement for Edinburgh
Place north of the City Hall, and understood Members’ suggestion of allowing vehicles to
turn right onto Lung Wo Road eastbound after leaving the City Hall. He would conduct a
study with the TD.
18. The Vice-Chairman suggested that the departments concerned conduct further study on
the traffic direction of the exit of the City Hall, and thanked the guests for attending the
meeting.
Agenda Item 6: Study on loading /unloading and parking space of goods vehicles
on Hong Kong Island
(C&W TTC Paper No. 31/2013)
(3:00 pm – 3:59 pm)
19. Ms Carmen CHU, Associate Director of Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong Ltd., said
that the consultancy firm had started to collect statistics and carry out a comprehensive study
on the supply and demand of parking spaces and loading/unloading spaces for goods vehicles
(GVs) on Hong Kong Island since 2010, so as to estimate the overall supply and demand of
GV parking spaces in 2016 and 2021. She reported that according to the result of the study,
the overall number of designated GV parking spaces on Hong Kong Island in the base year
was sufficient. However, the demand for such parking spaces in the Central and Western
(C&W) District and Wan Chai District were slightly serious, lacking 30 and 40 respectively.
If there were no short-term tenancy (STT) car parks, the C&W District would have a shortage
of around 235 designated GV parking spaces. As for the supply of the loading/unloading
spaces for GVs on Hong Kong Island, truck drivers would co-ordinate with each other in
general to minimise the impact on the traffic of the roads nearby and the situation was
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therefore acceptable. She said that the truck drivers on Hong Kong Island were mainly
engaged in the wholesale and retail sector. They preferred monthly parking spaces which
cost around $2,000 to $2,500 per month and would choose parking locations having regard to
parking charges. She said that the consultancy firm had forecasted the future parking
demand for GVs according to the estimated statistics on the distribution of population and
industries, etc. The result showed that the demand for GV parking spaces would decrease
by 2% and 18% in 2016 and 2021 respectively with the gradual decrease in the scale of the
manufacturing industry on Hong Kong Island. It was expected that a balance in supply and
demand would be reached in 2021. She stressed that despite the decrease in the demand for
GV parking spaces in the long run, it was still proposed to implement short-term measures as
the number of STT car parks might fall gradually. The measures included to provide a car
park for GVs with 21 parking spaces at the space under the Connaught Road West flyover in
the Western District and to provide a total of 29 on-street metered parking spaces for GVs in
the Central District, with 5 at Pier Road and 24 at Man Kwong Street respectively. She said
that there was currently a flower bed where trees were planted at Man Kwong Street facing
the pier. It was proposed to move the trees inwards in order to make space for a
carriageway. In addition, a connection point would be provided to link the car park under
the Connaught Road West flyover with the existing footbridge so that truck drivers could
enter and leave the car park safely. In the long run, the consultancy firm proposed that
parking spaces for GVs be included in the planning of the land use of the western part of
Kennedy Town or in future major development projects so as to further increase the supply of
GV parking spaces on Hong Kong Island.
20. The Vice-Chairman invited Members to discuss the paper. Questions and views of
Members were as follows:
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(a)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung queried if the TD used the report as an excuse to continue to
use the STT car parks in the C&W District. He stressed that the C&WDC would
like to develop the GV parking spaces near the Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park and
the Western Wholesale Food Market into a waterfront promenade, and asked the
department to note the decision of the C&WDC. He said that although it had
been decided a few years ago that the vacant site under the Connaught Road West
flyover would be used as a GV car park, the department had yet to take concrete
actions. He found it hard to accept and support the paper for the department had
spent much money and time on conducting the studies but only came up with a
proposed addition of 29 roadside parking spaces at Pier Road and Man Kwong
Street.
(b)
Mr KAM Nai-wai opined that the shortage of GV parking spaces in the C&W
District was a matter of common knowledge, and that conducting such a study
was a waste of the taxpayers’ money. He pointed out that the problem of illegal
parking was serious at Man Kwong Street, Man Yiu Street and Finance Street
currently, and opined that it was meaningless for the TD to further waste the
taxpayers’ money to transplant the trees to increase the number of parking spaces.
(c)
Mr CHAN Chit-kwai said that the TTC had reflected the shortage of GV parking
spaces in the C&W District to the TD many years ago, and that it was
unreasonable for department not to take the matter seriously and conduct a study
on the GV parking spaces on Hong Kong Island until the present stage. He said
that although 50 parking spaces were not enough to meet the demand, they were
better than none, and asked the department to implement the arrangement as soon
as possible. In addition, he pointed out that Rock Hill Street was a black spot of
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illegal parking, and the Police acquiesced in such a situation and did not press
charges. He asked the department to consider setting up meters to legalise
parking there.
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(d)
Mr CHAN Choi-hi opined that the TD should estimate both the best and the worst
scenarios when conducting the study, and enquired what measures the department
had in place if the demand for GV parking spaces did not fall by 18% in 2021.
He opined that the shortage of parking spaces for both private cars and GVs in the
C&W District was severe, and asked the TD to include private cars in the study of
GV parking spaces. He urged the department to provide GV parking spaces
under the Connaught Road West flyover as soon as possible, and suggested that
the department consider providing GV parking spaces at the bus stop near Shun
Tak Centre.
(e)
Mr Joseph CHAN said that the scale of the manufacturing industry on Hong
Kong Island had been shrinking over the last decade, and asked the department to
provide other more concrete statistics to support the inference that the demand for
GV parking spaces would fall. Moreover, he pointed out that the need to include
some GV parking spaces in future development projects had been mentioned in
many papers in the past. The TD should have put forward more specific
proposals and plans in the four-year study. He stressed that there was a severe
shortage of parking spaces for private cars in the C&W District, and asked the
department to strike a balance between the demand of private cars and that of
GVs when allocating parking resources.
(f)
Dr Malcolm LAM agreed with other Members and opined that there were
deficiencies in the study report in respect of the inference on the future demand
for GV parking spaces. He stressed that the manufacturing industry on Hong
Kong Island was currently very inactive. The study report’s inference that the
demand for GV parking spaces would fall as a result of the gradual shrinkage of
the manufacturing industry on Hong Kong Island was therefore illogical. He
pointed out that the GVs in Hong Kong were mainly involved in the wholesale
and retail sector, many buildings in the C&W District were being redeveloped
and the population size would grow gradually. It was therefore unlikely that the
demand for GV parking spaces would decrease.
(g)
Mr WONG Kin-shing said that the number of STT car parks would decrease
gradually and the study report also showed that the shortage of GV parking
spaces in the C&W District would increase from 30 in the base year to 70 in
2016. He asked the department to explain why the situation would deteriorate.
Moreover, he did not think that the TD could designate GV parking spaces in the
newly-developed residential buildings, and asked the department to consider
providing GV car parks under other flyovers in the district.
(h)
Mr YIP Wing-shing opined that most GV drivers working in the C&W District
would not park their vehicles in the Eastern District simply because GV parking
spaces were available there and therefore disagreed that GV parking spaces in the
Eastern District could alleviate the shortage in the C&W District. He urged the
TD to provide the 50 GV parking spaces proposed in the study report as soon as
possible and study the feasibility of providing GV parking spaces at other
locations in the C&W District.
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(i)
Mr YIP Kwok-him said that the C&WDC had discussed the problem of
insufficient GV parking spaces for many years. He agreed to Dr Malcolm
LAM’s analysis and did not understand how the study report drew the conclusion
that a balance between the supply and demand of GV parking spaces would be
achieved in 2021.
(j)
The Chairlady said that the conclusion of the study report was contrary to the
situation of the C&W District, and opined that the department had a wrong
estimation of the future demand for GV parking spaces. She said the study
report did not mention that a row of trees at Man Kwong Street had to be
relocated for the provision of 29 parking spaces. She believed that the public
would strongly oppose the department’s relocation proposal. She suggested that
the department allow GVs to park at Man Kwong Street at night only to avoid
relocating the row of trees and reducing green space of the district. She was
disappointed at the study report and opined that the report could not solve the
problem of insufficient GV parking spaces.
(k)
The Vice-Chairman understood that the C&W District was a developed
community where it was difficult for the department to identify suitable sites as
GV parking spaces, but he still could not accept the proposal of the provision of
29 GV parking spaces at Man Kwong Street. There was currently the problem
of illegal parking. On top of that, more space was required for the parking of
GVs than that of private cars. Providing 29 GV parking spaces would only
make the street more congested. In addition, he asked the department to give
supplementary information on how much green space at Man Kwong Street
would disappear under the proposal.
21. Mr CHEUNG Mun-kit, Senior Engineer/Strategic Roads 5 of the TD, said that the
study had commenced in late 2009, and that the study period was prolonged because
collecting data was time-consuming and the study had to tie in with the changes in the
planning and land use of the C&W District. The TD understood the C&WDC’s intention to
develop the waterfront promenade. Since there was not much information available at the
moment, it would discuss with the relevant departments how to support the development
concerned after the meeting. He added that the construction of the car park under the
Connaught Road West flyover had commenced in mid-June. It would take around 15
months and was expected to complete in late 2014. The department would expedite the
progress of the works as far as possible. He said that the 29 parking spaces at Man Kwong
Street would be open for GVs only at night. Members might raise suggestions on the use of
the parking spaces in the day-time. The department would also fully study and consider the
impact of illegal parking on the traffic nearby before providing parking spaces there. He
clarified that a row of palm trees would be transplanted, and the department would make
reference to the transplantation experience of the Central – Wan Chai Bypass works and
relocate the plants concerned to appropriate places. He said that the department would also
study the feasibility of providing GV parking spaces at other locations such as Rock Hill
Street and the bus stop near Shun Tak Centre, and would give the TTC a reply after the study
was completed. He said that the TD was deliberating with the Planning Department (PlanD)
on the provision of more GV parking spaces in the planning of the land use of the western
part of Kennedy Town in addition to the provision of 25 parking spaces for light goods
vehicles in public housing development projects.
22.
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Ms Carmen CHU said that the manufacturing industry could still be found in the
10
Eastern District and Chai Wan, and the decline of the manufacturing industry was only one of
the factors leading to the decrease in the demand for GV parking spaces. She reiterated that
the consultancy firm had interviewed the drivers and owners of GVs during the study. The
industry indicated that the collection and distribution goods would increasingly take place in
districts beyond Hong Kong Island, therefore drivers and owners did not have to park GVs in
the C&W District, resulting in a decrease in the night-time demand for GV parking spaces.
She said that the greater shortfall in the supply of GV parking spaces was a result of the
anticipation that STT parking spaces for goods vehicles at New Praya and Sai See Street in
Kennedy Town would be cancelled.
23. The Vice-Chairman started the second round of discussion on the paper.
and views of Members were as follows:
Questions
(a)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung reiterated that the Working Group on C&W District
Harbourfront would take back the GV parking spaces near the Sun Yat Sen
Memorial Park and the Western Wholesale Food Market for the development of a
waterfront promenade, and asked the departments concerned to be prepared in
advance. He said that it was impossible to provide 25 GV parking spaces at Ka
Wai Man Road which was winding, narrow and steep. He pointed out that the
demand for GV parking spaces depended on the district of residence of GV
drivers, instead of the district of the industry.
(b)
Mr KAM Nai-wai pointed out that the department did not respond to the question
on the cost of the study, nor did it present concrete statistics to support the claim
that the demand for GV parking spaces would fall by 18 %, but not more or less
than 18%.
(c)
Mr Joseph CHAN requested the consultancy firm to present concrete statistics,
such as the figures of the interviews, to support the assumption of the decrease in
demand for GV parking spaces. He stressed that even if the trees at Man Kwong
Street were transplanted successfully, it did not mean that green space in the
district would not be reduced. He objected to the provision of GV parking
spaces at the expense of green space near the waterfront promenade.
(d)
Dr Malcolm LAM asked the TD how to assess whether the results of the
consultancy firm’s study report were justified.
24. Mr CHEUNG Mun-kit replied that the 25 parking spaces at Ka Wai Man Road would
serve light goods vehicles not exceeding seven metres in length. The departments
concerned had conducted a feasibility study earlier and the TD would submit the relevant
information for Members’ perusal after the meeting. He said that the consultant’s fee of the
study was around $1 million, and the study report had been examined by the TD and the
relevant departments. He said that the TD would keep the reduction of greenery at Man
Kwong Street to a minimum in the detailed design of the night-time GV parking spaces there.
He would provide detailed information on the estimation about the 18% decrease in demand
for GV parking spaces after the meeting.
25. The Vice-Chairman concluded that many Members were dissatisfied with the contents
of the study report, and asked the department to give supplementary information on the
statistics and matters of concern to Members after the meeting. The Vice-Chairman thanked
the guests for attending the meeting.
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Item 7:
Proposed additional supply of parking space for private cars/vans on hourly and
monthly basis in the Kennedy Town Car Park
(C&W TTC Paper No. 41/2013)
(3:59 pm – 4:24 pm)
26. Mr Fabian CHEUNG, Senior Transport Officer/Transport Facilities Management of the
TD, said that the Kennedy Town Car Park provided 195 parking spaces for private cars, vans and
taxis. Since its opening in 2007, the distribution of the parking spaces was 150 monthly
parking spaces for private cars and vans, 20 monthly parking spaces for taxis and 25 hourly
parking spaces for the public every month. He pointed out that there was a keen demand for
hourly and monthly parking spaces in the district and the daily utilisation rate of the car park was
as high as over 90%. The department also received views from the public from time to time
that the hourly parking spaces of the car park were so insufficient that vehicles waiting to enter
the car park had to queue up along Rock Hill Street. He pointed out that Members had
discussed the arrangement concerning the sales of monthly tickets of the car park in the 6 th and
7th TTC meetings and opined that there was a need to review the proportion of hourly and
monthly parking spaces. After reviewing the utilisation of hourly and monthly parking spaces
in the car park, the TD proposed to cancel the 20 monthly parking spaces for taxis and increase
both the number of hourly parking spaces for private cars and monthly parking spaces for vans
by 10, i.e. the number of hourly parking spaces would be increased from 25 to 35 and the
number of monthly parking spaces, from 150 to 160. Affected taxi owners could still purchase
monthly taxi tickets of other car parks under the TD such as the Rumsey Street Car Park. He
said that the department was currently consulting the taxi trade and had notified individual users
currently using the monthly taxi tickets of the Kennedy Town Car Park. He hoped the proposal
could help ease the demand for hourly parking spaces for private cars and monthly parking
spaces for vans in the Kennedy Town Car Park.
27. The Vice-Chairman invited Members to discuss the paper. The questions and views of
Members were as follows:
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(a)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung agreed with increasing the number of hourly parking spaces
but stressed that the TD had to obtain the consent of the taxi trade before
implementing the proposal. He said the public queued up earlier and earlier prior to
the sale time of monthly tickets for parking spaces. It was extremely dangerous
because the queuing location was adjacent to a MTR works site. He reflected that
the ticket-scalping activities of queuing gangs were very rampant. Although the
majority of the public preferred to continue to purchase monthly tickets by queuing
up, the problem would only become more serious if the department continued to
maintain the current monthly ticketing arrangement.
(b)
Mr CHAN Chit-kwai said that taxis were often still on the move at night and the
demand for parking spaces was not large. He supported the department in
increasing the number of monthly and hourly parking spaces in the Kennedy Town
Car Park. He considered the practice of purchasing monthly tickets by queuing up
not desirable and suggested a sale-by-ballot mechanism.
(c)
Mr KAM Nai-wai proposed the department to designate the additional 20 parking
spaces as hourly parking spaces during daytime and convert them to night-time
parking spaces to utilise resources flexibly.
12
(d)
Mr IP Kwok-him opined that converting the 20 parking spaces for taxis into hourly
and monthly parking spaces could help ease the shortage of parking spaces in the
Western District. Nevertheless, the TD had to address the problem of ticket
scalping activities of some syndicates that queued up by plastic stools. He
requested the department to replace the first-come-first-served system with a
sale-by-ballot system and to register the car plate numbers of applicants before the
ballot. Once registered, no amendment was allowed to ensure fairness.
(e)
Dr Malcolm LAM welcomed the TD’s proposal of providing more parking spaces
for private cars. He said that ticket scalping was rampant in the district and agreed
that the selling of monthly tickets should be done by drawing lots with prior
registration of car plate numbers. He also requested the Police to step in to curb the
unlawful act.
(f)
Ms Shirley WONG said that as there were signs that the problem of ticket scalping
was worsening, she supported to sell parking tickets by a balloting system with prior
registration of car plate numbers. In addition, she suggested lengthening the
validity of tickets to three or six months to reduce the inconvenience brought about
by the balloting system to the public. She said that there were insufficient storeys
in government car parks. She suggested the Government should follow the
example of Japan to increase the number of storeys in car parks so that more floor
area was available for providing parking spaces.
(g)
Mr YIP Wing-shing stressed that the TD should not solely rely on the Kennedy Road
Car Park to cope with the demand for parking spaces of the whole Western District
and had to study the feasibility of providing additional parking spaces in other areas
of the district. He pointed out that the problem of illegal parking was serious in the
Kennedy Town Praya and urged the department to install parking meters there as
soon as possible.
28. Mr Fabian CHEUNG reiterated that consultation with the taxi trade was underway and the
TD had successfully notified 11 current users of the monthly tickets for taxis of the Kennedy
Town Car Park of the new arrangement. They were also informed that there were still
sufficient monthly parking spaces for taxis in the nearby Rumsey Street Car Park for the use of
taxi owners or the public. Only three of them held dissenting views and the others had no
comments. The department would continue to listen to the views of the trade. Moreover, he
said that the operator of the car park had already tried to arrange parking of vehicles in the car
park during the day-time as far as possible if the actual situation permitted to avoid wasting
resources. He added that the proposal would be implemented on 1 August 2013 subject to
Members’ support.
29. The Vice-Chairman started the second round of discussion on the paper. Questions and
views of Members were as follows:
(a)
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Mr CHAN Hok-fung understood that TD had started questionnaire surveys
concerning the monthly ticket sales method and that most respondents hoped to
maintain the current arrangement but he stressed that purchase of tickets by queuing
up would only foster ticket scalping. He agreed with Ms Shirley WONG that
monthly balloting might cause nuisance to the public and proposed the department to
draw lots once every quarter or every six months. Moreover, he requested the
Police to take appropriate actions on the matters mentioned by Members to curb
13
syndicated queuing and ticket scalping.
(b)
Mr IP Kwok-him stressed that the TTC had repeatedly given views concerning the
arrangement of monthly ticket sales but the department had yet to take any actions or
implement any improvement measures. The department concerned should be held
fully responsible in case of accidents.
(c)
Mr KAM Nai-wai strongly requested the department to replace the monthly ticket
sales method with a balloting system and asked the department to consult the TTC
again concerning the detailed arrangement of the system before the next meeting.
30. Mr Fabian CHEUNG said that the TD would review the current monthly ticket sales
arrangement concurrently while it increased the number of hourly parking spaces for private cars
and the number of monthly parking spaces for vans in the Kennedy Car Park. It would report
the findings of the review to the TTC as soon as possible.
31. Mr LAU Wing-fu, Officer-in-Charge, District Traffic Team (Western District) of the
HKPF, said that the Police would arrange frontline police officers to maintain order while the
public queued up and would report the situation to the intelligence section and the anti-trial
squad of the Western District for follow-up.
32. The Vice-Chairman concluded that the TTC unanimously requested the TD to replace the
current monthly ticket sales arrangement with a balloting system and urged the department to
provide a work report and timetable. The Vice-Chairman thanked the guests for attending the
meeting and invited the Chairlady to chair the discussion of the remaining agenda items.
Item 8:
Concern over the problem of vehicle-pedestrian conflict on the driveway at the
Bird Bridge
(C&W TTC Paper No. 32/2013)
(4:24 pm – 4:51 pm)
33. Miss SIU Ka-yi supplemented the paper and said that many students of the Lok Sin Tong
Leung Kau Kui College and Shing Kung Hui St. Matthew’s Primary School would pass by the
Bird Bridge after school. She asked the TD what measures it had in place to let drivers know
that entry was allowed only for vehicles not exceeding seven metres in length and to ensure that
the contractor avoided using the road section during the peak hours before and after school to
safeguard the safety of students.
34. Mr Thomas NG added that the road section was very narrow and there was insufficient
room for vehicles to make U-turns at the end of the bridge. He asked how the TD would ensure
that heavy vehicles could exit from the road section safely.
35. Ms Kiki YEUNG, Engineer/Special Duties of the TD, said the department understood that
the road section was narrow and it was risky for heavy vehicles to use that section. Thus the
department had imposed a requirement on the contractor that vehicles exceeding seven metres in
length should be denied access to the road section in its application to the Buildings Department
(BD) for hoarding permits for the works site. Having considered that many students passed by
the road section after school and learned that the contractor had violated the regulation, the
department subsequently restricted the contractor’s vehicles to access the works site only during
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14
off-peak hours in the morning. She said that the road section was a one-way road with a dead
end where heavy vehicles could only exit by reversing. The department had also requested the
contractor to arrange staff members to direct the entries and exits of construction vehicles to
ensure pedestrians’ safety.
36. Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai, District Operations Officer (Central District) of the HKPF, said
that the Police understood Members’ concerns on the road section. He said that the Police
would deploy additional frontline officers to inspect the site during the works and try to tie in
with the traffic measures arranged by the TD as far as possible. He said the Police would
provide the prosecution figures of the road section to the TTC after the meeting.
37. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper. Questions and views of Members
were as follows:
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(a)
Mr KAM Nai-wai was unsatisfied with the replies of the TD and the Police, pointing
out that he had earlier written to the Police to express his concerns over the safety
issues of the road section, so the Police should have be able to have the prosecution
figures ready. He stressed that the bridge was not long and the contractor could still
manually transport the construction materials into the works site even if the TD
prohibited the access of contractor’s vehicles to the site. He said that the figure in
the paper did not show that the contractor did deploy staff members to direct traffic.
That would pose a great threat to pedestrians and he requested the TD to prohibit the
access of vehicles to the road section immediately.
(b)
Mr IP Kwok-him opined that drivers of heavy vehicles were putting pedestrians at
risk if they exit the bridge by reversing their vehicles. He said that the TD should
not allow access of heavy vehicles to the road section unless there was sufficient
room for them to make U-turns. He did not accept the current traffic arrangement
of the bridge and agreed that vehicular access to the bridge should be prohibited.
(c)
Miss SIU Ka-yi doubted the TD failed to effectively enforce the requirement that the
contractor should not allow access of vehicles exceeding seven metres in length to
the works site, should deploy staff members to direct traffic, and should ensure that
heavy vehicles did not access the works site during the peak hours before and after
school. She pointed out that there was a polyclinic near the bridge and many
elderly and pregnant women would pass by the road section, but there were no
crossing facilities. She asked the TD to explain how to ensure the safety of
pedestrians.
(d)
Mr Thomas NG doubted that the TD had not conducted any site inspections when it
laid down the requirement of restricting the length of vehicles to seven metres or
below. It also failed to consider factors such as the width of vehicles and the
presence of traffic lights and zebra crossings at the junction. He did not think that
the Police was responsible to direct traffic for the contractor.
(e)
Mr LI Po-ming agreed that vehicular access to the road section should be prohibited.
The department should put top priority on human’s life when issuing permits. He
opined that there was no need for the Police to prepare prosecution figures in
response to Members’ request every time before the meeting and should initiate
prosecutions according to the actual situation.
(f)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung agreed with the prohibition of vehicular access to the road
section. He pointed out that construction vehicles were also not used in the works
15
site of the buildings on Sands Street. Likewise, the construction works at the Bird
Bridge should not be affected if vehicles were denied access to the works site.
38. Ms Kiki YEUNG said that the TD had all along been communicating closely with the BD
and the contractor and would discuss how the contractor could safeguard the safety of
pedestrians during the works. She added that if vehicular access to the road was completely
banned, inconvenience would be caused to people who went to the nearby polyclinic by taxis or
private cars.
39. The Chairlady started the second round of discussion on the paper.
of Members were as follows:
Questions and views
(a)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung reiterated that the TD should give priority to pedestrians’ safety
and prohibit vehicular access to the road section immediately. There was no need
for the TD to consider how the contractor could carry out the remaining works.
(b)
Miss SIU Ka-yi said that as the TTC had agreed to prohibit vehicular access to the
bridge on safety grounds, the TD should relay the proposal to the BD and the
contractor immediately and no further discussion was needed.
(c)
Mr KAM Nai-wai stressed that the TD should prohibit access of heavy vehicles to
the bridge and should not issue any special permits to construction vehicles of the
contractor. He opined that to prevent the fatal accident in Po Hing Fong involving
reversing vehicles from recurring, the TD should implement the arrangement
immediately and that there was no need to further discuss with the BD and the
contractor. He said that the Police had been asked about the prosecution figures of
illegal parking at the bridge in the discussion paper and urged representatives from
the Police to make sufficient preparation for Members’ questions before the meeting.
(d)
Ms Shirley WONG said that she had studied in the Lok Sin Tong Leung Kau Kui
College before and agreed that many students would pass by the bridge after school.
She was very worried that students would be knocked down by heavy vehicles.
She said that the TD should not mislead Members because people taking taxis or
private cars to the clinic could alight at Hospital Road. She strongly supported a
total ban on vehicular access to the bridge.
(e)
The Chairlady said that the bridge was designed to be a footway which should be
used by pedestrians instead of being occupied by vehicles.
(f)
Mr MAN Chi-wah said the TD should note that heavy vehicles had to drive onto the
pavement if they had to access the bridge. Moreover, he warned the TD that it
should not close one of the traffic lanes for the contractor to carry out construction
works if vehicular access to the road section was prohibited.
40. Ms Kiki YEUNG said that the TD would discuss with the Lands Department and the
polyclinic concerning the prohibition of vehicular access to the bridge and would review the
current traffic arrangement of the bridge immediately.
41. Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai added that the Police welcomed and supported any improvement
measures, including the prohibition of vehicular access to the bridge. He said that the Police
had misunderstood question 4 in the paper. He undertook that the Police would closely monitor
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the traffic conditions of the location in question, initiate prosecutions against any
non-compliance and provide the relevant prosecution figures after the meeting.
42.
The Chairlady thanked the guests for attending the meeting.
Item 9:
Strong concern over an unilateral announcement made by a green minibus
operator for cancellation of four green minibus route nos. 10, 10X, 11 and 31
currently serving the Mid-levels and Southern District with effect from July
2013
(C&W TTC Paper No. 33/2013)
Proposed service optimisation of green minibus route nos. 10, 11and 31 on
Hong Kong Island
(C&W TTC Paper No. 40/2013)
(4:51 pm – 5:24 pm)
43. The Chairlady said that paper No.33/2013 had been submitted in January 2013, but was
not discussed until the 9th meeting due to the heavy agenda of the TTC. Meanwhile, the
minibus operator had withdrawn its decision to cancel the service and the TD had proposed
measures to enhance the service of the routes. The proposal had been set out in paper No.
40/2013. She invited the representative of the department to present the optimised proposal.
44. Miss Yvonne TSUI, Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western of the TD, briefed
Members on the optimised proposal, including:
(a)
To re-route Hong Kong Island Green Minibus (GMB) routes 10 and 10P to
Lockhart Road instead of Hennessy Road;
(b)
To amalgamate GMB route 11 with route 31 given that the average daily
occupancy rate of route 11 was not high; and
(c)
To re-route GMB route 31 to Lockhart Road instead of Hennessy Road and to
advance its last departure time after route amalgamation.
45. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper.
Members were as follows:
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Questions and views of
(a)
Miss SIU Ka-yi said that she had monitored the minibus services at Caine Road
and Bonham Road and found that passengers waiting at Caine Road and Bonham
Road could not get on the bus during the morning peak hours. However, the
TD’s proposal suggested diverting routes 10 and 10P away from Caine Road and
Bonham Road. She doubted that the TD did not assess the impact of the
proposal on nearby residents. In addition, she strongly opposed to the TD’s
deployment of minibuses originally plying between Caine Road and Bonham
Road for the introduction of new services. She considered the assumption that
“as passengers could take route 31X to travel between Pok Fu Lam and Causeway
Bay, more room of route 31 could be left for passengers in the West Mid-levels”
to be valid only if the TD did not deploy minibuses originally plying between
Caine Road and Bonham Road to run other routes.
(b)
Mr Jackie CHEUNG shared Miss SIU Ka-yi’s view and considered that the
17
proposal of suspending the service of GMB routes 10 and 10P plying between
Caine Road and Bonham Road had completely ignored the transport demand of
East Mid-levels residents. He said that many residents of the Southern District
would take route 31 to Central. Hence, the TD’s assumption that passengers at
the Southern District would choose to take route 31X so that room of route 31
would be freed up was not valid. He enquired about the current number of
minibuses for routes 11 and 31 as well as the number of minibuses for routes 31
and 31X after implementing the proposal.
(c)
Mr WONG Kin-shing opined that it was irresponsible for the GMB operator to
unilaterally cancel the service of four GMB routes and then withdraw the
decision. He doubted that the GMB operator made use of such an act to coerce
the TD to approve its fare increase application. Furthermore, he pointed out that
the TD would only suggest fare increase, amalgamation of routes, re-routing and
service suspension in response to GMB operators’ complaints about loss-making
routes. It never considered the service quality of GMB operators and conducted
a re-tender exercise of the service. He mentioned that the attitude of drivers of
GMB routes 12 and 13 was poor and doubted that the TD did not have a proper
mechanism to monitor the GMB services.
(d)
Mr KAM Nai-wai enquired whether the TD had issued warnings to the GMB
operator for the unilateral cancellation of the service and the subsequent
withdrawal of the decision. Furthermore, he asked the TD when the franchise of
the GMB operator would terminate and whether an open tender would be carried
out for GMB services upon the termination.
(e)
The Chairlady enquired the TD whether the frequency of route 10 would be
increased to ensure the provision of satisfactory transport services along Bonham
Road and Caine Road subsequent to the cancellation of route 10X. In addition,
she worried that the traffic of Hennessy Road would become very heavy after the
implementation of the optimised proposal as there were already many buses
running on the road. She also enquired about the operating hours of the
overnight service of route N31.
46. Miss Yvonne TSUI said the TD understood that passengers had a keen demand for
GMB services during peak hours, but the carrying capacity of the minibuses was limited.
Apart from taking minibuses, passengers at Caine Road and Bonham Road could also take
Citybus (CTB) 40M to Central/Wan Chai. According to a service survey conducted by the
TD, the occupancy rate of CTB 40M was about 80% during peak hours. She would submit
the information on the distribution of minibuses after the implementation of the optimised
proposal to Members for information after the meeting. She added that the GMB operator
had proposed rationalising GMB routes in August 2012, including the introduction of route
10P as proposed at the current meeting. She said that the overnight route N31 departed
every 20/30 minutes from Tin Wan Estate between 11:20 pm to 12:10 am and from Jaffe
Road in Causeway Bay between 12:00 midnight to 1:00 am. She had noted Members’ views
and would relay the views to the relevant unit of the TD for follow-up and then provide a
written reply to Members after the meeting.
47. The Chairlady was disappointed at the TD’s reply and started the second round of
discussion. Questions and views of Members were as follows:
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(a)
Mr KAM Nai-wai was disappointed that the representative of the TD failed to
answer Members’ questions and urged the TD to send appropriate representatives
to attend the meeting.
(b)
Mr Jackie CHEUNG pointed out that Miss Yvonne TSUI had not answered his
question.
(c)
Miss SIU Ka-yi pointed out that Miss Yvonne TSUI had not answered her
question. Besides, understanding that the occupancy rate of 40M was more than
80% during peak hours, she indicated that the data provided by the TD were
inaccurate.
48. Miss Yvonne TSUI said that the daytime service of route 31 would remain unchanged
under the optimised proposal. The first minibus from Tin Wan Estate to Causeway Bay
would depart at 6:30 am and the last one at 11:20 pm. The first minibus from Jaffe Road in
Causeway Bay to Tin Wan Estate would depart at 6:00 am and the last at 11:59 pm. The
overnight route N31 would run every 20/30 minutes and depart from Tin Wan Estate between
11:20 pm and 12:10 am, and from Jaffe Road in Causeway Bay between 12:00 midnight and
1:00 am. Route 31X would be operated at a headway of 30 minutes. The main
amendment to route 10 lay in its routeing, while the headway would remain at 7 to 10
minutes. Regarding the service of CTB 40M, the TD would continue to monitor the
passenger demand and make appropriate adjustment in response to passenger needs.
49. Miss SIU Ka-yi asked the TD to confirm whether the number of minibuses serving the
area in the vicinity of Bonham Road and Caine Road would remain unchanged. She also
requested the TD to ensure that the GMB operator would not allocate minibuses resources of
the Mid-levels to other routes.
50. Mr Jackie CHEUNG asked the TD to explain whether the GMB operator would deploy
all minibuses from route 11 to the newly-operated route 31X if the service of route 31
remained unchanged. He reiterated that Mid-levels residents often could not get on
minibuses as they were fully loaded. He urged the TD to consider deploying empty
minibuses to en route minibus stands at the Mid-levels to pick up passengers and providing
stands in Central for routes 10P and 31X, so that passengers at the Southern District heading
for Central did not have to take route 31.
51. The Chairlady opined that Members had various concerns about the optimised proposal
and hoped that the TD could postpone implementing the proposal.
52. Mr CHAN Choi-hi hoped that GMB operators could follow bus companies’ practice to
propose an annual route development programme for minibuses, so that Members could talk
directly with the GMB operators.
53. Miss Yvonne TSUI said that as set out in the paper for service optimisation, the
proposed frequency for routes 10 and 10P would remain unchanged. The TD would also
make timely adjustments to the implementation date taking into account DCs’ views on the
proposal. Regarding the proposed provision of stands in Central for routes 10P and 31X,
she said that the TD had to study whether there were suitable locations en route. She
undertook to relay Members’ views on the occupancy rate of 40M during peak hours and the
proposed service optimisation of GMB routes 10, 11 and 31 to relevant departments.
Members’ views could then be taken into account when the departments concerned and the
GMB operator refined the optimised proposal.
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54. In closing, the Chairlady requested the TD to provide additional information after the
meeting and postpone implementing the optimised proposal. The Chairlady thanked the
guest for attending the meeting.
Item 10: Strong request for frequency increase in the service of green minibus route no.
58 and additional provision of special departures from Cyberport for the
concerned green minibus routes during the commuting hours in the afternoon
(C&W TTC Paper No. 34/2013)
(5:24 pm – 5:32 pm)
55. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper. Mr CHAN Hok-fung was
disappointed at the TD’s reply and pointed out that there was a strong demand for GMB
routes 58 and 59 as residents mainly took them to travel between Sai Wan and the Southern
District. During the evening peak hours, minibuses would often become fully loaded when
arriving at Cyberport and passengers had to wait for a long time. She opined that the TD
should not use the data collected in only one day and ignore residents’ requests. She urged
the TD to allocate resources of route 59 to route 58 during the evening peak hours to help
clearing waiting passengers at Cyberport.
56. Miss Yvonne TSUI, Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western of the TD, said that
the TD had deployed staff members to conduct a survey on the service standard of GMB
route 58 heading for Kennedy Town at stands at the Arcade of Cyberport and Sandy Bay
Road on 10 May 2013. She pointed out that the overall frequency of the route concerned
was higher than the requirement stipulated in the schedule of service. The average
occupancy rates at the two stands were 81% and 98% respectively. Only one passenger
could not get on the minibus as it was full. She said that the TD had approved more than 20
employees’ buses in the light of the actual circumstances for the convenience of office
workers at Cyberport and institutions on Sandy Bay Road. The TD would also remain
vigilant on passenger demand for various public transport services.
57. Mr CHAN Hok-fung reiterated that the TD could not make conclusions simply from the
survey data of GMB services of one day. He pointed out that the destination of most
employees’ buses was Central instead of Sai Wan and that visitors to MacLehose Medical
Rehabilitation Centre and students attending international schools nearby could not use
employees’ service. He requested the TD to conduct surveys on the route concerned on a
long term basis and study the feasibility of deploying minibuses from route 59 to route 58.
58. Miss Yvonne TSUI said that the TD had proposed implementing route rationalisation
for GMB routes 58, 58A and 59 in 2011, but the C&WDC Members opposed the proposal.
Nevertheless, she undertook to relay Members’ views to relevant departments for follow-up.
59. Mr CHAN Hok-fung stressed that the C&WDC Members only opposed the proposal of
cancelling the GMB route 59 in 2011. He now proposed allocating resources from route 59
to route 58 during off-peak hours so as to enhance the service, which was different from the
previous proposal.
60. Miss Yvonne TSUI said that the TD would further study the service of GMB routes 58,
58A and 59.
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61.
The Chairlady thanked the guest for attending the meeting.
Item 11: Proposed relocation of a green minibus stand of route no. 45A from First
Street to Second Street near Western Street
(C&W TTC Paper No. 35/2013)
(5:32 pm – 5:42 pm)
62. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper. Mr Sidney LEE was
disappointed that the TD did not accept Members’ suggestions. He also found it
unacceptable that there were more than 30 passengers waiting at the stand as high as six times
a day. He pointed out that waiting passengers had to queue up from First Street to Second
Street, which would not only obstruct the access of other pedestrians to Central Street Market,
but also endanger waiting passengers. He said that the proposed relocation of the GMB
stand of route 45A to Second Street near Western Street would have minimal impact on
routeing. Furthermore, the future exit of MTR station leading to First Street and Second
Street would be the same, so it did not make any difference for the public to go to First Street
or Second Street.
63. Miss Yvonne TSUI, Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western of the TD, said that
the terminus of GMB route 45A was currently located outside Central Street Market, which
would not obstruct vehicles at the offside traffic lane. On the other hand, the pedestrian
walkway outside Second Street Public Bathhouse was narrower, which was not an ideal place
for passengers to queue for the minibus. If the pedestrian walkway was widened, the
carriageway would be narrowed. As a result, the minibus pulling off the road would
obstruct other vehicles. In addition, if the minibus terminus was moved to Second Street,
passengers coming from First Street and Queen’s Road West had to climb the slope or stairs
at Central Street to go to the corner of Second Street first, then walk along the gently sloping
Second Street before reaching the Public Bathhouse. Some passengers, such as the elderly
and children, might find it inconvenient. According to a recent TD’s survey on GMB
services conducted at the terminus of First Street, there were six occurrences where more than
30 passengers were waiting and each occurrence lasted for four to nine minutes during the
morning and evening peak hours. The actual impact on First Street was expected to be
minimal.
64. Mr KAM Nai-wai considered that the stand at First Street was more conveniently
located than its original location outside the PARKnSHOP. He urged the TD to review the
impact of entrances/exits of the future MTR stations on pedestrian flows in the vicinity
before it made a decision on whether to move the stand to Second Street.
65. Miss Yvonne TSUI said that the stand of GMB route 45A would be relocated to its
original location outside PARKnSHOP upon completion of the MTR works.
66. Mr Sidney LEE added that the stand was currently located at the entrance of Central
Street Market, and the exits of Sai Ying Pun Market and Central Street Market were at Second
Street. Moving the stand to Second Street would be more convenient to shoppers coming
out from Sai Ying Pun Market and Central Street Market. He agreed that the TD should
assess the impact of entrances/exits of the future MTR stations on nearby traffic. Given that
the MTR works at First Street was in full swing, he enquired whether the TD could move the
stand from First Street to Second Street on a trial basis so as to reduce the burden on First
Street.
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67. Miss Yvonne TSUI reiterated that there was limited space at the carriageway outside
Second Street Public Bathhouse. Minibuses waiting for passengers at Second Street would
block the way of vehicles behind them. In addition, the pedestrian walkway outside Second
Street Public Bathhouse was narrower where passengers had to queue up next to the wall.
Hence, the TD did not find it desirable to relocate the stand to Second Street.
68. Mr Sidney LEE added that there had been prolonged parking of large GVs at the
carriageway outside Second Street Public Bathhouse, but other large vehicles were still able
to run through Second Street by using the adjacent traffic lane. On the contrary, the
carriageway at First Street could only accommodate two minibuses. The third minibus had
to park on a steep slope and wait.
69.
The Chairlady thanked the guest for attending the meeting.
Item 12:
Proposals regarding improvement of MTR services
(C&W TTC Paper No. 36/2013)
(5:42 pm – 5:50 pm)
70. The Chairlady said that the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) refused to send
representatives to the meeting notwithstanding repeated invitations by the Secretariat.
71. Mr CHAN Choi-hi was deeply dissatisfied at the MTRCL’s refusal to send
representatives to the meeting and considered that it did not respect the C&WDC. He
suggested that the MTRCL should consider providing new “MTR Fare Savers” in the Western
District after the commissioning of the West Island Line in 2014. In addition, he thought
that 231 platform seats were not enough to cope with the demand and thus requested the
provision of more seats on the platforms. In the light that the existing signage for toilets in
MTR stations was too small and commuters had no idea how to have access to the staff toilets,
he requested that such signage be improved. He stressed that designated female-only
compartments should be introduced and thought that male passengers who had got on the
compartment would eventually get off due to public pressure. He also urged the MTRCL to
consider lending umbrellas to passengers on rainy days and growing real plants to green up
the stations by making reference to subway stations in Guangzhou and Taiwan respectively.
72. The Vice-Chairman agreed that the TTC’s dissatisfaction should be relayed to the
MTRCL in writing. He highlighted that quite a number of entrances/exits of Hong Kong
and Central MTR Stations were connected to shopping malls. There was however a lack of
clear signage in the malls indicating whether a lift or a stairlift was available at the
entrances/exits. He suggested the early installation of such signage to facilitate wheelchair
passengers and those who had difficulties in using escalators to take the MTR.
73. Mr KAM Nai-wai considered that the TTC should handle MTRCL’s refusal to attend
the meeting in a serious manner and requested District Officer (Central and Western) to urge
the relevant departments and organisations to send representatives to TTC meetings
accordingly to answer Members’ enquiries. He further requested the Secretariat to relay
TTC’s dissatisfaction to the MTRCL in writing.
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74. The Chairlady requested the Secretariat to send the MTRCL a copy of the minutes for
its follow-up and write to the company conveying the TTC’s comments after the meeting.
The Chairlady thanked the guest for attending the meeting.
Item 13:
Concern over the impact of hotels in the district on the traffic nearby
(C&W TTC Paper No. 37/2013)
(5:50 pm – 6:15 pm)
75. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper.
comments were as follows:
Members’ enquiries and
(a)
Mr CHAN Hok-fung pointed out that the number of hotels in the C&W District
was growing. Although the hotels had reserved space for car parks during
planning, many of them did not fully utilise their car parks upon completion. As
a result, coaches and Airport Express shuttle buses parked illegally on the streets
and blocked traffic while visitors jaywalked after getting off and posed great
danger. He opined that the departments concerned should strictly monitor
whether hotels had used the available transport facilities.
(b)
Mr Sidney LEE shared Mr CHAN Hok-fung’s views. He pointed out that Best
Western Hotel Harbour View had been abusing a lay-by as its lobby for a
prolonged period and visitors had to get off in the middle of the road and then
walk to the hotel. The TD’s proposal to extend the time period of the
no-stopping restriction zone opposite to the hotel would only make coaches pick
up and drop off passengers in the middle of the road.
76. Ms Kiki YEUNG, Engineer/Special Duties of the TD, said that the TD had already
liaised with Best Western Hotel Harbour View and the BD. The bollards fronting the hotel
had been removed and its car park was open for use by coaches. The bus stop of Airport
Express shuttle bus Route No. H1 would also be relocated westward to the lay-by ahead to
prevent the shuttle buses from picking up and dropping off passengers at the junction of
Queen’s Road West and Eastern Street.
77. Mr CHAN Kun, District Operations Officer (Western District) (Atg) of the HKPF, said
that he had nothing to add on behalf of the Police.
78. The Chairlady started the second round of discussion on the paper.
enquiries and comments were as follows:
(a)
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Members’
Mr CHAN Hok-fung considered that the departments concerned should monitor
and mandate the use of car parks by hotels. He asked the Police about the reason
for not mandating coaches pick up and drop off passengers in the car parks of
hotels. He suggested writing to the BD and requesting the department to explain
whether more floor area would be approved if facilities such as car parks were
added to the design of the hotels during planning, and submit a breakdown of the
number of pick-up/drop-off spaces and parking spaces by hotels in the district, so
that the departments concerned and DC Members could monitor the utilisation of
such transport facilities. He also suggested informing the Town Planning Board
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(TPB) in writing that some hotels did not follow the predetermined traffic
arrangements upon their completion.
(b)
Mr KAM Nai-wai thought that the department concerned did not give full
consideration to local traffic conditions in issuing licences to hotels and
guesthouses. The Police had also failed to enforce the requirement that coaches
must pick up and drop off passengers only inside the car parks of hotels. As a
result, local residents had to suffer considerable disturbance. He supported
requesting the TD, BD and PlanD to provide a breakdown of the number and area
of pick-up/drop-off spaces and loading/unloading spaces by hotels in the area of
Sheung Wan and Sai Wan for the enforcement actions of the relevant departments.
(c)
Mr Sidney LEE did not understand why the Police had not instituted any
prosecutions against coaches which picked up or dropped off passengers in the
middle of the road. He also questioned whether hotel developers had cheated
bodies such as the TPB out of more developable area by adding facilities such as
car parks to the design of the hotels during planning.
(d)
Mr IP Kwok-him opined that the Police should institute prosecutions against
coach drivers instead of visitors. He further requested the Police to provide the
number of prosecutions of such a nature.
(e)
Mr YIP Wing-shing considered that the TD and the HKPF should be responsible
to request hotels to make their car parks available for the use of coaches. He
stressed that Members did not mean to smother local tourism, but given that the
irregularities of the hotel industry had seriously affected residents’ livelihood and
visitors’ safety, it was necessary for the departments concerned to issue warnings
to such hotels.
(f)
Mr CHAN Choi-hi supported obtaining from the departments concerned a
breakdown of pick-up/drop-off spaces and loading/unloading spaces by hotels and
suggested writing to the Hong Kong Hotels Association to reflect the TTC’s
concern to the industry.
(g)
Mr CHAN Chit-kwai believed that the BD had taken into account ancillary
transport facilities when vetting and approving hotel layout plans. Hotels should
open and use their transport facilities in accordance with the plans submitted to
the BD.
(h)
Mr Joseph CHAN stated that a hotel development project on Lugard Road, the
Peak was being considered by the TPB. Since that section of the road was a
footpath where there were thousands of walkers every day, the site was certainly
not suitable for hotel development.
79.
Mr LAU Wing-fu, Officer-in-charge, District Traffic Team (Western District) of the
HKPF, clarified that the reply to Question 2 in Annex IV should be “The Police is unable to
mandate that coaches go inside car parks in hotels for pick-up and drop-off.” Hotels took up
the management of their car parks and could decide which vehicles were allowed to park
there. He stressed that if the Police found any coaches picking up or dropping off passengers
in the middle of the road, the driver would be prosecuted for disregarding passenger safety.
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The Police would also strengthen patrols and randomly conduct anti-jaywalking operations at
that location.
80. Mr CHAN Kun said the Police would encourage the hotel industry, through the Police
Community Relations Offices, to use the car parks or transport facilities in hotels for pick-up
and drop-off as far as practicable. He reiterated that the Police would prosecute coach
drivers who picked up or dropped off passengers in the middle of the road and request tourist
guides to educate visitors about the correct way of crossing the road.
81. Miss Shirley LEUNG, Engineer/Central and Western 3 of the TD, replied that the TD
would closely monitor the traffic conditions in the vicinity of hotels and consider designating
new no-stopping restriction zones at appropriate locations where necessary.
82. Mr WAI Hon-kwok, Principal Technical Officer (Traffic)/Southern and Peak of the TD,
said that all vehicles, except those with permit, were prohibited from entering Lugard Road.
During the consultation on the change of land use, the TD had clearly stated that the site
concerned on Lugard Road was, from the perspective of traffic management, not suitable for
hotel development.
83. In closing, the Chairlady requested the TD and the BD to submit a breakdown of
pick-up/drop-off spaces by hotels in the area of Sheung Wan and Sai Wan. She also
requested the Police to relay Members’ concern to the hotel industry and tourist guides unions.
The Chairlady thanked the guests for attending the meeting.
Item 14:
Concern over the use of pedestrian crossing facilities by and guidelines on
road safety for the elderly
(C&W TTC Paper No. 38/2013)
(6:15 pm – 6:30 pm)
84. Pursuant to article 15(1) of the C&WDC Standing Orders, the Chairlady specially
invited Ms YUNG Kam-chun, member of a working group on elderly-friendly measures in
the C&W District (the Working Group), to present the paper.
85. Ms YUNG Kam-chun thanked Members for their support for the Working Group and
their care for the elderly’s needs. The year before, the Working Group had re-written the
guidelines on provision of transport services for the elderly and proposed more than 60
improvements to the design of roads, buses, railways, stations, piers, etc. Members could
refer to the report on the guidelines on the provision of elderly-friendly transport services for
details. She stressed that the Government should enact legislation to require all public
transport operators (PTOs) to follow the guidelines so that the improvement proposals could
be fully adopted.
86. The Chairman invited Members to discuss the paper.
comments were as follows:
(a)
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Members’ enquiries and
Mr CHAN Chit-kwai thanked the Working Group for sending a representative to
the meeting and inviting Members to attend the community forum held on
Hollywood Road. Although some proposals might not be feasible due to
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geographical constraints, given the seriousness of the problem of ageing
population in Hong Kong, government departments and PTOs should continue to
actively promote an elderly-friendly culture.
(b)
Miss SIU Ka-yi considered it worthwhile for government departments and PTOs
to make reference to the guidelines. She hoped that PTOs, though quite a
number of them simply gave general replies, could consider the actual situation of
ageing population and provide elderly-friendly facilities such as adequate toilets
and seats in new MTR stations for use by the elderly.
(c)
Mr Sidney LEE questioned the validity of the study conducted by the TD given
that places such as Taiwan and Guangdong Province had progressively added
countdown devices to traffic lights. He pointed out that many elderly persons
had overestimated the duration of the “green man” signal and were stuck in the
middle of the road when the traffic light suddenly showed a “red man”. He
therefore proposed the addition of countdown devices to traffic lights so that the
elderly could decide whether they should cross the road. He also proposed that
the TD conduct a further study to evaluate whether the addition of countdown
devices to traffic lights could enhance road safety.
(d)
Mr KAM Nai-wai said that because of the growing population of the elderly and
the transport fare concession for the elderly, more and more elderly persons would
take public buses. Therefore, he urged the TD and bus companies to consider
providing more priority seats on buses.
(e)
Mr MAN Chi-wah encouraged government departments and PTOs to consider the
elderly’s needs from their point of view and actively promote an elderly-friendly
culture.
(f)
Mr CHAN Choi-hi suggested that the TTC should relay Members’ comments in
writing to the Transport and Housing Bureau (THB). He also urged the
departments concerned to introduce legislation to ensure the implementation of
elderly-friendly measures in transport services.
87. Ms Penny CHUNG, Public Affairs Officer of Citybus Limited/New World First Bus
Services Limited, said that the two companies had been, in collaboration with the Working
Group, improving the design of bus compartments and building an elderly-friendly
environment in the past few years. The two companies had taken note of Members’ views
and would actively consider their suggestions taking into account the necessity and feasibility.
88. Mr Francis LOK, Engineer/Central and Western 1 of the TD, said he would relay to his
colleagues Members’ views on the addition of countdown devices to traffic lights.
89. The Chairlady requested the Secretariat to write to the THB conveying the TTC’s
comments after the meeting and thanked the guests for attending the meeting.
Item 15: Serious concern of a disastrous traffic congestion in the north of Hong Kong
Island caused by vehicle breakdown at Magazine Gap Road
(C&W TTC Paper No. 39/2013)
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(6:30 pm – 6:50 pm)
90. The Chairlady invited Members to discuss the paper.
Members were as follows:
Questions and views of
(a)
Mr Joseph CHAN indicated that a vehicle broke down at Magazine Gap Road on
28 May 2013. As the department failed to clear the scene immediately, the
traffic in the Peak Area, the Mid-levels, Central, Admiralty and Causeway Bay
was seriously affected and northern Hong Kong Island was nearly paralysed. He
asked the government departments concerned whether the prevailing contingency
transport arrangements would be reviewed and whether the mechanism was
effective enough to handle traffic incidents of such a large scale. In addition, he
said that the vehicle involved was a heavy GV of 30 tonnes according to the
Police’s reply. He queried that the vehicle had far exceeded the weight limit on
Magazine Gap Road. He requested the Police to enhance publicity and take
enforcement action against violation vehicles.
(b)
Mr Alex LEUNG asked the department whether it was legal for heavy GVs of 30
tonnes to travel on the section concerned. He enquired how many police officers
were deployed to handle the incident on that day and why a one-lane two-way
operation was implemented on Magazine Gap Road, instead of diverting downhill
traffic to May Road and Old Peak Road so that more vehicles could go uphill at
the same time. In addition, he considered the TD’s contingency mechanism
ineffective, otherwise the tailback would not have extended from the Mid-levels
to North Point, which nearly paralysed the traffic of northern Hong Kong Island.
He suggested the Police and the TD conduct a review on the mechanism.
91. Miss Yvonne TSUI, Senior Transport Officer/Central and Western of the TD, said that
upon notification by the Police, the TD’s Emergency Transport Coordination Centre issued a
press release to radio stations, television stations, paging and mobile phone companies as
soon as possible, informing the public about the traffic news and the temporary service
arrangements for the affected public transportation. The information was also uploaded onto
the column of Special Traffic News on the TD’s webpage and disseminated to the public
through the mobile app GovHK Notifications.
92. Mr CHAN Kwong-ming, Officer-in-Charge District Traffic Team (Central District) of
the HKPF, said that as the Police had to direct uphill and downhill traffic at the same time, a
one-lane two-way operation was implemented on Magazine Gap Road so that vehicles could
continue travelling to May Road, Brewin Path and other places via Magazine Gap Road.
93. Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai, District Operations Officer (Central District) of the HKPF, said
that there was a road sign at the junction of Kennedy Road and Cotton Tree Drive, indicating
that vehicles of 5.5 tonnes were prohibited from using the road section from 8:00 am to 10:00
am and from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm. The vehicle involved was in the road section before 5:00
pm, so the driver did not violate any traffic regulations. He said that the Police had taken
immediate action when its mobile patrol car was aware of the incident, and deployed more
than 20 police officers to direct traffic in the vicinity. As there were bar tendons on the
goods vehicle, it could only be towed away from the scene when the bar tendons were loaded
onto another GV. The clearance time was lengthened as a result.
94. The Chairlady started the second round of discussion on the paper.
views of Members were as follows:
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Questions and
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(a)
Mr IP Kwok-him said that there were large trailers parking on Robinson Road
near Raimondi College and he was worried that it was difficult for heavy vehicles
to travel on such winding and narrow roads. He opined that the TD should ban
heavy vehicles from travelling on such roads at all times.
(b)
Mr Alex LEUNG asked the Police how to determine the severity of an accident
and whether it would take measures other than the established practice in handling
traffic accidents depending on the severity of the accident.
(c)
Mr Joseph CHAN said that he was aware of the incident from an instant message
sent by a resident. He urged the Police to notify DC Members of the
constituency where the incident occurred if similar incidents recurred so that
Members who were familiar with the environment and residents’ habits could
give comments on the response measures. He agreed with Mr Alex LEUNG’s
suggestion that vehicles should be diverted to travel downhill via May Road and
Old Peak Road as downhill traffic at that time was not heavy. He opined that the
incident was more than an ordinary traffic incident and that the department should
handle it in a flexible manner. In addition, he reflected complaints from many
residents that heavy vehicles were often found on Magazine Gap Road during
restricted hours. He asked the Police to monitor the situation and step up
inspection and prosecution. He also asked the TD to review the weight and
length limit of vehicles on the road section.
95. Mr WAI Hon-kwok, Principal Technical Officer (Traffic)/Southern and Peak of the TD,
said that the weight limit on Cotton Tree Drive was 5.5 tonnes and a restriction period was
also set. The weight limits on Magazine Gap Road and May Road were both three tonnes.
Vehicles exceeding three tonnes were prohibited from travelling on the road section unless
granted a permit by the TD. He said that the TD would not allow heavy goods vehicles like
the one involved in the incident access to the road section.
96. Mr CHEUNG Chi-wai thanked Members for their comments on the Police’s response
measures for the incident and would consider Members’ suggestions in the review. He
emphasised that some motorists might insist on using their original route and argue with the
frontline police officers on the traffic diversion, which would even worsen the problem of
traffic congestion. He added that the Police had already notified the public about the traffic
incident through its Public Relations Branch on that day.
It would enhance its
communication with Members in future. He said that the Police would step up inspection
and enforcement against heavy GVs travelling in inappropriate places.
97. Mr Philip LAM, Engineer/Central and Western 2 of the TD said that there was no
weight limit on the eastbound and westbound Robinson Road. Imposing such a restriction
might affect the daily life of Mid-levels residents, so further study was necessary.
98. Mr Joseph CHAN added that there was currently no weight limit on the section of
Magazine Gap Road between Garden Road and May Road in off-peak hours and asked the
TD to review the arrangement.
99.
The Chairlady thanked the guests for attending the meeting.
Item 16: Written question - Comments on traffic and transport made by the elderly
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(C&W TTC Written Question No. 1/2013)
(6:50 pm)
100. The Chairlady said that the department had made a written response to the written
question of the current meeting and invited Members to note the paper.
Item 17: Action checklists on matters arising from the last meeting
(C&W TTC Paper No. 26/2013)
(6:51 pm)
101. The Committee noted the paper.
Item 18: Any other business
(6:51 pm)
102. There was no other business.
Item 19: Date of the next meeting
(6:52 pm)
103. The Chairman announced that the next TTC meeting would be held on 12 September
2013. Paper submission deadline for government departments would be 22 August 2013.
Paper submission deadline for Members would be 28 August 2013.
104. The meeting was adjourned at 6:52 pm.
The minutes were confirmed on 12 September 2013
Chairlady:
Ms CHENG Lai-king
Secretary:
Miss CHUNG Yeuk-hung
Secretariat of the Central and Western District Council
September 2013
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