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COMMUNICATIONS
companies provide regular sailings to Europe and another twenty services are run to the North American continent. Sailings to Australia and New Zealand, South Africa and South America and to all Asian Ports are both regular and frequent. Passenger ship companies maintain scheduled services from Hong Kong at frequent intervals to ports all over the world, and the luxury liners belonging to companies operating round-the-world or trans-Pacific cruises call regularly at Hong Kong.
The Government maintains through the Marine Department a total of 52 moorings for ocean-going vessels. All these moorings were designed by members of the Department and 25 are classified as suitable for the use of vessels up to 600 feet in length in typhoon conditions. Additional moorings are being planned. Commercial wharves can accommodate vessels up to 750 feet in length with drafts up to 32 feet. The provision of berthing facilities to take larger vessels likely to call at Hong Kong is under discussion, and improved passenger facilities are being provided. There is also, both within and beyond the harbour limits, considerable anchorage space with good holding ground of varying depths.
The principal wharf and godown company has permanent storage space for 760,000 tons and the total available in the Colony is well over 1,000,000 tons. Additional space will be available in 1962 when various schemes on Hong Kong Island, Kowloon Peninsula and at Tsuen Wan for the erection of new large godowns are completed. The storage and transhipment space in the Port caters for all types of refrigerated, dangerous and ordinary goods. Hong Kong stevedoring companies and wharf companies handle these, and other cargoes requiring special stowage or heavy lift techniques, at a rate which compares favourably with any other port.
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Most cargo handled in Hong Kong is at one stage transported by lighter, and there are now over 2,000 lighters and junks used for this purpose, of which more than 200 are mechanically propelled. This mechanized fleet, consisting mainly of family operated units, is expected to grow even larger since this form of transport is particularly suited to the rapid handling and delivery of the small parcels of cargo which make up a considerable proportion of the tonnage handled in the Port.