COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT

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The completion of two flyovers over Garden Road linking Kennedy Road and Upper Albert Road marked yet another step towards the completion of the im- provement scheme for better road communications between the Central and Mid- levels Districts of Hong Kong Island. A further flyover, linking Garden Road with Queensway, is now being designed by consultants and when this is completed in 1974, the entire project will have been brought to a successful completion.

On the south side of the Island, the construction of a new road from Deep Water Bay Road to Wong Chuk Hang Road is in hand. Other new roads were constructed in conjunction with private building developments in the Morrison Hill, Chai Wan, Wan Chai Reclamation, Jardine's Lookout and Tin Hau Temple Road areas. Existing major roads being widened to handle increases in traffic included Connaught Road Central, Kennedy Road and Wongneichong Gap Road. Improvement works at the junction of Pokfulam Road, Bonham Road and Hill Road continued.

In Kowloon, the flyovers for the Kowloon City and San Po Kong interchanges were completed and opened to traffic. Work continued on major improvements to the route along the foothills in the northern part of Kowloon between Lai Chi Kok and Kwun Tong. This project, on which consulting engineers were engaged, provides for grade-separation at all intersections. Consulting engineers were also engaged on the construction of elevated road works at the Waterloo Road/Prince Edward Road/ Boundary Street interchange where a 1,000-foot long, three-lane temporary steel flyover was erected in four days. This flyover will reduce traffic congestion during construction of the permanent works.

Two concourses, serving passenger ferries for Hong Kong Island, one at Kwun Tong and the other at Tai Kok Tsui were completed and brought into use. To provide safe crossing facilities on busy roads, two footbridges were completed, one at Cheung Sha Wan Road and the other at Choi Hung Road.

In the New Territories, a new road linking Tai Wan and Kei Ling Ha Lo Wai was completed and work on its extension to Nai Chung commenced. The widening of the last single-lane section of Tai Mong Tsai Road was completed. The section of the Luk Keng-Tai Mei Tuk Road between Tai Mei Tuk and Chung Mei was com- pleted and surfacing of the section between Chung Mei and Luk Keng commenced. Upon completion, this 3.8-mile length of road will not only provide a direct link between Tai Mei Tuk and Luk Keng, but will improve communications to the remote villages at Wu Kau Tang in Tai Po District.

Traffic management techniques continued to be applied to improve the flow of traffic on the existing road network. Good progress was maintained on the installa- tion of traffic light signals at road intersections and pedestrian crossings, and 234 sets of traffic signals were in operation by the end of 1972. The conversion of existing pedestrian signals to 'standing/walking man' signals with flashing units began; and the street lighting system was again expanded with a total of 1,304 new lamps installed.

Among the transportation surveys carried out were journey time studies in the New Territories, the characteristics of Public Light Bus operations, and the speed of

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