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THE DECISIONS WHILE KEEPING CHINA INFORMED. SOME STAGE 2 PROJECTS WHICH WOULD CLEARLY BE DUE FOR COMPLETION ONLY AFTER 1997 AND WHERE THE FINANCING SIMILARLY WENT BEYOND THAT DATE WOULD ONLY BE LAUNCHED AFTER DISCUSSION AND AGREEMENT WITH THE CHINESE. (WE SHOULD OF COURSE BE UNDER NO ILLUSIONS ABOUT THE RISK THAT THE CHINESE WOULD ARGUE THAT THEIR AGREEMENT WOULD BE NECESSARY FOR ALL CAPITAL CONSTRUCTIONS PROJECTS GOING BEYOND 1997, AND NOT JUST AIRPORT PROJECTS. WE WOULD HAVE TO SAY THAT THE AIRPORT HAS BECOME UNIQUE BECAUSE OF ITS SIZE AND PUBLIC PROMINENCE SEMI COLON THE SAME ARGUMENT COULD NOT APPLY TO THE MYRIADS OF PUBLIC WORKS PROJECTS WHICH GO ON
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AT FAR GREATER ANNUAL COST INCIDENTALLY THEN THE AIRPORT. JOINT DECISIONS ON THESE WOULD BRING GOVERNMENT TO A HALT.)
WE HAVE DONE SOME VERY PRELIMINARY THINKING ON HOW THIS SCENARIO WOULD WORK. IT IS POSSIBLE TO ENVISAGE E.G. ABANDONING MOST OF THE WEST KOWLOON RECLAMATION AND BUILDING A ROAD ON STILTS ALONG THE EXISTING WATERFRONT. WE COULD PERHAPS PHASE THE AIRPORT, BUILDING ONLY ONE RUNWAY AND THE TERMINALS NECESSARY FOR IT, WITH TERMINALS FOR A SECOND RUNWAY LEFT FOR A LATER STAGE - ALTHOUGH IT WOULD MAKE BETTER SENSE ECONOMICALLY TO DO THE FULL RECLAMATION IN THE FIRST STAGE. THE LANTAU EXPRESSWAY COULD PERHAPS INITIALLY BE A TWO-LINE ROAD ON EACH SIDE, WITH SPACE LEFT FOR THIRD LANES AT A LATER STAGE. WE HAVE LOOKED AGAIN AT THE BRIDGE BUT IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE TOTALLY TO ABANDON THE RAILWAY OPTION, IE. NOT RESERVING SPACE FOR IT, ALTHOUGH WE COULD CERTAINLY DEFER IT. THE RAILWAY WILL EVENTUALLY BE NEEDED AND IT WOULD BE MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE TO BUILD IF SPACE IS NOT RESERVED.
THIS TWO STAGE APPROACH WOULD OF COURSE BE NEITHER AS DESIRABLE IN TRANSPORT TERMS, NOR AS COST EFFECTIVE AS STARTING FROM THE BEGINNING WITH A FULL-SCALE OPTION.
Redacted Under FOI Exemption Sec 27(1)
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