the Peak terminus at Victoria Gap, this means of transport has provided almost without interruption for over sixty years a reliable funicular service. Until motor roads were opened in 1924 it was the only means of transport to the Peak. The cars are operated by a modern electric haulage plant and incorporate safety features which make it possible for a car to come to a halt within eight feet on the steepest gradient of the track.
Traffic figures have for the second year in succession numbered over a million.
Bus Services
Bus services on the Island are maintained by the China Motor Bus Co., Ltd. operating a fleet of 144 vehicles. Total mileage run by buses on the Island was approximately 5.3 million and passengers carried were about 43.6 million.
Considerable improvement was made in the services operated by the Kowloon Motor Bus Co., Ltd., which operates the service in Kowloon and the mainland part of the New Territories.
The company's buses covered 13 million miles during the year compared with 114 million in 1949. The number of passengers carried in 1950, apart from season ticket holders, was 123 million in comparison with 90 million in 1949 and 56 million in 1948. During the year the company added 59 buses to its fleet, including 49 double-decker buses. The bus fleet total was brought up to 250, as against 191 in 1949. Such has been the demand for transport on the mainland that the company has placed an order for thirty new double-decker and twenty single-decker buses for delivery early in
1951.
Ferries
The "Star" Ferry Co., Ltd., operates a passenger ferry service across the narrowest part of the harbour, a distance of approximately one mile, from a point in the centre of Victoria to Tsim Sha Tsui at the southern extremity of Kowloon peninsula. Six vessels are in service, and operate daily for 19 hours. A five-minute service is maintained during the day and a regular service is maintained till well past midnight. Approximately 37 million passengers were carried in 136,000 crossings during the year, as compared with 35 million passengers transported in 120,000 crossings in 1949, the average daily load being 105,000.
The Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Co., Ltd., with a fleet of over 30 modern vessels, operates a vehicular ferry service across the harbour, four cross-harbour passenger services, and three services to outlying islands and districts of the New Territories. During 1950 the company opened a new passenger ferry service between Shamshuipo and Wilmer Street in the western district of Victoria. Over 1,700,000 passengers were carried on this new service during its first three months. During its first year's operation the service between Wanchai and Tonnochy Road, opened in 1949, carried over 111 million passengers.
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