COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT
Kowloon-Canton Railway
153
The most momentous event of the year for the Kowloon-Canton Railway was the re- introduction on April 4, after a gap of 30 years, of a direct through passenger train service between Kowloon and Guangzhou (Canton). The train, which is first class, air-conditioned, and has 640 reclining seats, was fully loaded in each direction every day during 1979,
In January, the government signed a final agreement with a British consultancy firm for it to provide overall project management, design and specialist advice for the modernisation and electrification of the railway. The first stage of the electrified service, between Kowloon station in Hung Hom and Fo Tan in Sha Tin, is expected to be commissioned by the spring of 1982, with full electrification of the line up to the territory's border town of Lo Wu by the end of 1982.
An order has already been placed for 45 three-car electric multiple train units, with the first delivery expected at the end of 1980. These electric trains will be powered by 25 kV alternating current supplied from overhead cables. Construction of a maintenance and servicing depot for the electric trains will start early in 1980 and will absorb the existing railway workshops at Ho Tung Lau.
-
―
Double-tracking of the railway between Hung Hom and Sha Tin has been completed except for one short section the new Beacon Hill Tunnel which is expected to be completed in 1981. Double-tracking between Sha Tin and Tai Po Market is scheduled for completion by early 1982 with the rest of the project through to Lo Wu by the end of 1982. The tracks consist of new, heavier rails which provide a smoother and more comfortable ride; they are continuously welded, resting on concrete sleepers.
In tandem with double-tracking, an electronically-controlled, track-circuited, colour light signalling system has been introduced between Hung Hom and Sha Tin; it will progressively be extended to Lo Wu. The signalling system is administered from a centralised control room and is designed to eliminate, to the maximum practicable extent, the risk of human error.
Under its modernisation programme, all the railway's existing stations are being rebuilt and a new station at Kowloon Tong is to be constructed. This will have a three-level interchange with the Mass Transit Railway. Work will begin at Kowloon Tong in 1980. Meanwhile, the rebuilding of Sha Tin and Mong Kok stations is proceeding and will be completed by 1982. Both stations will have a concourse above track level, connected to the platforms by escalators and lifts, with building complexes above the stations. At Sheung Shui station, an additional loop line and platform were completed in October. It is later planned to add new stations at Tai Wai and Fo Tan.
All of the railway's existing platforms are to be raised to 1.06 metres which is the floor level of the new electric trains. This will assist in reducing the time that people take to catch and leave trains, enabling minimal station stopping times to cater for the large numbers of passengers who will be carried each day. This is estimated to reach 250,000 people by the mid-1980s and half-a-million a day by 1990.
During 1979, the Kowloon-Canton Railway experienced substantial increases in both passenger and freight traffic.
Roads
The planning, design and construction of new roads, as well as improvements to existing road networks, are based on traffic priorities and the government's financial allocation. These are reviewed annually. In spite of the cut-back in government spending in the 1979-80 financial year, the construction of highways proceeded satisfactorily in 1979, although