COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT
163
1,322 licensed public hire cars, many of them owned by hotels for the exclusive use of their guests.
Transport Administration
A government-appointed Transport Advisory Committee advises the Governor in Council on broad issues of transport policy, with a view to improving the movement of people and freight. The Commissioner for Transport is the statutory authority responsible for planning and regulating public transport services. His wide range of responsibilities also covers vehicle licensing, driving tests, vehicle inspections, and statutory functions under the Road Traffic Ordinance or legislation relating to indi- vidual public transport companies.
During the year a number of amendments were made to road traffic and transport legislation relating to new braking standards for trailers, the use of motor cycles on footpaths, the fitting of seat belts to the front seats of private cars, franchises for public light buses, third party insurance, anti-pollution standards for diesel- engined vehicles, and the control of smoke emission.
At the Transport Department's vehicle examination centre, 40,785 vehicles were inspected during the year.
Licensing
The number of registered vehicles-which dropped in the two previous years— rose to 191,746 in 1976. This was 3,728 more than in 1975. Vehicle statistics are given in Appendix 36. Driving licences remained in steady demand, with the number at the end of the year reaching 522,469 compared with the previous year's 498,274.
An on-line computer system for driver licensing was brought into operation. This has enabled motorists to have their licence documents processed within minutes over the counter. The system has also assisted in maintaining accurate records of licensed drivers and it provides almost instant information from records. The com- puter system for the registration and licensing of vehicles is at an advanced stage of preparation and is expected to be implemented in 1977. A related system of fixed penalties for certain driving offences, which is administered by the Royal Hong Kong Police, came into operation during the latter part of the year.
Courses are held at the Transport Department's Indoor Driving Instruction Centre to improve the general standard of driving. Trainees are taught basic driving techniques with the aid of 16 driving simulators, films and a computer controlled panel before they have private driving instruction on the road. At the end of the year, 8,310 people had attended such courses since the centre was opened in 1974.