COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT
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along the track by two miles of steel cable. The tramway climbs to an altitude of 1,305 feet and the steepest part of the track has a gradient of one in two. During the year, 1.96 million passengers were carried.
Taxis and Public Hire Cars
Taxis are licensed for use on either Hong Kong Island or Kowloon. On Hong Kong Island, fares are $1.50 for the first mile and 20 cents for every subsequent fifth of a mile. In Kowloon, the fare is $1 for the first mile and then 20 cents for each quarter of a mile. During 1973, 1,305 new licences were issued and by the end of the year there were 4,753 licensed taxis-3,311 in Kowloon and 1,442 on Hong Kong Island. The average tender price for the 999 new licences issued by competitive tender in 1973 was $84,000.
Public cars are hire cars which can be used to carry passengers on specified and pre-arranged journeys. They differ from taxis in that they may not ply for hire, trips must be pre-arranged, and the fare is a matter for negotiation between the hirer and the driver. By December 31, 1973 the number of public car licences issued was 1,106.
Contract Buses
A number of companies operate coaches for sight-seeing tours, school and factory bus services. In addition some schools and factories operate their own private omni- buses and light buses. The number of vehicles licensed for these purposes at the end of 1973 was 1,521.
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Ferry Services
The Hongkong and Yaumati Ferry Company has a fleet of 66 diesel-engined vessels, including 12 vehicular ferries. The company operates 13 routes in the harbour between Hong Kong and Kowloon, as well as services to the New Territories, including outlying islands. The company introduced two new passenger services on July 2, 1973, from Shau Kei Wan to Kwun Tong and Sam Ka Tsuen.
There has been a considerable reduction in the number of vehicles, particularly private cars, using the vehicular ferries since the cross-harbour tunnel opened in August 1972. The company proposes to diversify its vehicular ferry services by intro- ducing new routes between North Point and Kwun Tong, and between Central and Sham Shui Po. Work on the Kwun Tong pier is well advanced and it should be available for use in 1974.
During the year, the company introduced three new ferries of the water-bus or water-taxi type-smaller than the normal ferries. More vessels of this type are due in 1974.
During 1973, the company carried a total of 158.4 million passengers-146.8 million on its cross-harbour services and 11.6 million to and from outlying districts. The vehicular ferries carried 4.1 million vehicles during the same period, a decrease of 32 per cent compared to the previous year.