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COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT
ment of the Transport Department in November, 1967. A second tube was con- structed and came into use on January 18, 1978, when the first tube closed for refur- bishing and the upgrading of equipment. This included increasing the capacity of the ventilation fans, improving the lighting, installing closed circuit television and a new system of traffic control. In addition to this work, the toll plaza was widened to accommodate two more toll booths and the tunnel now has eight booths serving nine toll lanes. In 1978, $9.59 million was collected from the 7.7 million vehicles which used the tunnel. Toll fees vary from $1 to $2. The growth in traffic has averaged 25 per cent over the last three years.
The Cross Harbour Tunnel opened in August, 1972, and is operated by the Cross Harbour Tunnel Company, in which the government has a 25 per cent interest. The twin-tube tunnel, constructed at a cost of $320 million, is built on the submerged tube principle. In 1978, $167.2 million in revenue was collected from 27.3 million vehicles which are divided into eight categories and are charged a toll, appropriate to their category, ranging from $2 to $20. Annual traffic growth has averaged 36 per cent since the tunnel opened.
The twin tubes of the Airport Tunnel were completed in 1976 and are awaiting the installation of equipment and the completion of road connections. The tunnel, which goes under the runway of Hong Kong International Airport, is scheduled to be opened under Transport Department management in 1980. It will be toll-free. The Airport Tunnel forms part of the East Kowloon Way project connecting the Cross Harbour Tunnel at Hung Hom with the airport and the industrial area of Kwun Tong.
The Aberdeen Tunnel will connect Aberdeen on the south side of Hong Kong Island with Happy Valley to the north and thence, at an elevated level, via the Canal Road Flyover extension to the Cross Harbour Tunnel and the motorway that runs along the waterfront on the north shore of the island. This toll tunnel, a full two- tube four-lane facility, is planned to be opened in 1980. It will be managed by the Transport Department.
Public Transport
Probably no country can equal the intensity, productivity and diversity of Hong Kong's public transport system. With the exception of trolleybuses, and even these have been suggested, every conceivable mode of transport has developed and survived with a minimum of government regulation and with an absence of state subvention. The comprehensive range of transport services includes some 2,677 franchised buses and coaches of which approximately 2,126 are double-deckers, 4,350 minibuses, some 7,663 taxis, 162 double-deck trams with 22 single-deck trailers, 96 ferry vessels, a funicular cable tramway ascending one of the world's steepest gradients, diesel- hauled trains of the Kowloon-Canton Railway (British Section), an aerial cable-car system, and the Mass Transit Railway currently under construction.
Because of Hong Kong's unique geographical setting and the complex interaction of commerce and industrial activity, all forms of public transport are viable and are operated at a level of efficiency of which many of the world's cities could be envious. The vast majority of the population relies on public transport and demand frequently outstrips supply. Growth in public transport has been virtually uninterrupted since