TRANSPORT
The 900-metre Tseung Kwan O Tunnel, opened in 1990, links Kowloon and Tseung Kwan O New Town. It was used by 48 000 vehicles daily in 1997. The toll was $3.
The 1.6-kilometre, toll-free Cheung Tsing Tunnel opened in 1997 and links Lantau Island with West Kowloon and the North-West New Territories. It was used by about 6 000 vehicles daily.
The Cross-Harbour Tunnel, the Eastern Harbour Crossing, the Tate's Cairn Tunnel and the Western Harbour Crossing were built by the private sector under 'Build, Operate and Transfer' franchises.
The 1.9-kilometre Cross-Harbour Tunnel connects Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island and Hung Hom in Kowloon. Opened in 1972, it was used by a daily average of 123 000 vehicles in 1997, making it one of the world's busiest four-lane road tunnels. The tolls, which include a government passage tax, varied from $4 to $30 per vehicle.
The Eastern Harbour Crossing is Hong Kong's second cross-harbour road tunnel. It was opened in 1989 and links Quarry Bay on Hong Kong Island and Cha Kwo Ling in Kowloon. A daily average of 86 000 vehicles used the two-kilometre tunnel in 1997. Tolls ranged from $5 to $30. On the Kowloon side, the Eastern Harbour Crossing is connected by elevated roads to the Kowloon portal of the Tate's Cairn Tunnel.
The Tate's Cairn Tunnel was opened to traffic in 1991, providing an additional direct road link between the north-eastern New Territories and Kowloon. About four kilometres long, it is Hong Kong's longest road tunnel and was used by an average of 71 000 vehicles daily in 1997, paying $8 to $20 each.
The Western Harbour Crossing is the first six-lane road tunnel in Hong Kong. Opened in April 1997, it links Sai Ying Pun on Hong Kong Island and the West Kowloon Reclamation near Yau Ma Tei in Kowloon. Its capacity of 180 000 vehicles per day is about 50 per cent higher than that of the other two cross-harbour road tunnels. It was used by an average of 22 000 vehicles daily in 1997. Tolls ranged from $15 to $95.
An automatic toll collection system was installed at the Cross-Harbour Tunnel and Aberdeen Tunnel in August 1993, the Lion Rock Tunnel in August 1994, the Eastern Harbour Crossing in September 1995, the Tate's Cairn Tunnel in May 1996, the Western Harbour Crossing in April 1997, and the Shing Mun Tunnels and Tseung Kwan O Tunnel in October 1997, enabling motorists to drive through designated toll booths without stopping.
Traffic Control and Surveillance
A continuing programme of traffic control measures is being implemented to improve traffic flows. At the end of the year, there were 1 377 signalised junctions, of which 994 were under the control of Area Traffic Control (ATC) system. By the end of 1997, 308 signalised junctions on Hong Kong Island were under the ATC system and 40 closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras were in use for traffic surveillance. There were 509 signalised junctions under the control of Kowloon ATC system and 60 CCTV cameras were in use for traffic surveillance in Kowloon. In the New Territories, the ATC and CCTV systems for Tsuen Wan, Kwai Tsing and Sha Tin
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