2
I
On the question of fares and quality of service, accept the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation's submission that
since it is
the non-profit-making public corporation with a
public interest
interest at heart, fares and services will be set at a reasonable level satisfactory to the community. It has been revealed that in terms of cost of travel, short distance
travellers will pay about the same fares as using buses; medium distance travellers may have to pay about 20 to 30 cents more;
and long distance passengers may have to put
to put up with a higher premium. In the light of the improved comfort, frequency and reliability offered by the LRT, this level of pricing does not However, I would like to make one
seem
unreasonable.
at
observation: since there will not be a cheaper mode of internal
transport,
least for a number of years, lower-income travellers will no doubt be affected. And it is this group of
people, who
ill afford any additional charges and who willing to sacrifice comfort for saving that will be hard hit.
can
are
In this respect, I urge the Government or the KCRC to look into the possibility of devising some kind of subsidy scheme to compensate the extra financial burden imposed on this group of people.
As regards the matter of supervision of the operation
of the LRT,
I believe that sufficient monitoring apparatus will
be set up.
Tuen Mun and Yuen Long District Board members will
closely monitor the
the running of the LRT, through their Traffic and Transport Committees and their Own arrangements with the KCRC. The KCRC Managing Board, comprising officials from the Government and individuals from various sectors of society will, also keep the LRT under scrutiny. And it is my understanding that the Commissioner for Transport will keep the LRT under supervision as well. Of course, the Governor in Council will be the ultimate monitoring authority. With all these provisions, I believe the interests of the public will be faithfully adhered