TRANSPORT
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kilometres of track between Yuen Long and Tuen Mun. Additional alignments will be added to the system later, leading to the completion of the full system by about 1993. An extension to Tin Shui Wai will be included.
Following the Executive Council's decision in 1984 to build a second harbour crossing between Tai Koo Shing and Cha Kwo Ling, the Eastern Harbour Crossing, a number of international consortia and local companies submitted proposals to finance, construct and operate the facility which will provide a four-lane road crossing and a Mass Transit Railway link. On completion of the franchise negotiations, the successful consortium, the New Hong Kong Tunnel Co. Ltd., will start work in early 1986. The tunnel should be ready for use in late 1989.
Subsequent to the opening of the Mass Transit Railway Island Line, the bus services along the northern shore of Hong Kong Island were rescheduled as were the green minibus services, so as to rationalise the services of the various modes of public transport operating along this corridor. The China Motor Bus Company (CMB) which provides bus services on Hong Kong Island and the red public light buses were hardest hit and had to readjust their services.
This came at a time when CMB's maintenance standards and procedures were subject to much public criticism and concern. Following a serious accident in January 1984, a special working group of the Transport Advisory Committee was appointed to look into CMB's maintenance. The working group's report was published in March, making a series of recommendations on how CMB's maintenance could be improved. These recommenda- tions were endorsed by the Transport Advisory Committee and the Governor in Council, and it was stated that progress made by the company in improving its maintenance would be an important factor in the consideration of the further extension of CMB's franchise. From April, the Transport Department liaised closely with CMB with a view to assisting the company to improve the maintenance of its bus fleet and the Transport Advisory Committee monitored progress on a monthly basis.
Efforts to combat road congestion continued. The pilot study of an Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) System aimed at controlling the use of road space rather than car ownership was completed late in the year and district boards and interested organisations were consulted on whether a full system should be introduced. The reaction from most quarters was not in favour of immediate implementation, and as a result the Governor in Council decided in December not to proceed with the full system for the time being. However, it was decided to investigate in more detail the possibility of using the ERP equipment to facilitate the automatic collection of tolls at tunnels.
Administration
The Transport Branch of the Government Secretariat, whose head is the Secretary for Transport, is responsible for overall policy formulation and the direction and co-ordination of all transport matters. In discharging this responsibility, the Secretary for Transport is joined on major transport issues by the Transport Advisory Committee (TAC), which advises the Governor in Council on transport policies. The TAC is chaired by an unofficial and has 11 unofficial and six official members. The Transport Policy Co-ordinating Committee, with a wholly official membership chaired by the Secretary for Transport, advises on the co-ordination of policies.
The Transport Department is responsible for executing policy and regulating much of the internal transport system. The Commissioner for Transport, who heads the depart- ment, is the administering authority for the Road Traffic Ordinance and other legislation