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to the Members of this Council and that after launching this idea they would put forward good and concrete proposals or suggestions to carry out the present motion.
Mr. Chairman, with these remarks I beg to move.
MR. BERNACCHI (In English):-Mr. Chairman, I am very happy to second this motion. Indeed, it is similar to a motion which I moved many years ago about beautifying Gloucester Road, when the sea came up to the edge of the road, and which, for some years thereafter, provided a sitting out place, beautified with flowers and shrubs which was most popular with people living in the vicinity. Indeed, at one time, there was a suggestion that it be called "Bernacchi Boulevard" but which suggestion I did not particularly like, especially as it was surrounded by the ugliness of parked cars to say nothing of a large rubbish dump in the area which was a subject matter of Richard MASON's best selling book "The World of Suzie Wong". The P.W.D., although efficient, are proverbially lacking in the niceties of life and construct these "flyovers" for convenience of traffic without apparent regard to the resulting ugliness. I think that if they are beautified with flowers and shrubs, not only for the benefit of the nearby inhabitants, but the whole look of these monstrous flyways then it would be quite different.
Mr. Chairman, with these remarks, I am happy to second this motion.
MR. SALES (In English):-Sir, had Mr. BERNACCHI been more mindful that election time is drawing near, he would have left it to me to ask for clarification on the location of Gloucester Road. (Laughter). It was my intention to ask you, Sir, whether in point of fact the name is still retained officially, because long, long ago Mr. BERNACCHI asked that it should be changed and called "Bernacchi Boulevard" with which I agreed. (Laughter).
Of course Mr. Henry Hu's thoughtful motion is deserving of all support. I have long been concerned that all these small plots of land should be properly laid out and planted in an attractive manner for the enjoyment of our citizens. I have urged the Urban Services Department to do so. The last time I wrote on this subject was on 31st July 1972 when, after urging the Department to beautify the approaches to the Cross Harbour Tunnel on both sides in the same way as the appearance between Kai Tak and Tsim Sha Tsui has been greatly improved through our planting programme, I wrote:
"The construction of flyovers has encroached on some of our amenity plots and rest gardens. As some of these road projects have now been completed, will you please examine the position
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in each case so as to determine what can be salvaged for public use?"
I am assured that the Recreation and Amenities Division took action on my letter. They reported that work had been done in the Cross Harbour Tunnel connections and approaches, at the flyovers at Hing Fat Street, Harcourt Road, Cotton Tree Drive, Gascoigne Road and Princess Margaret Road, and at the Kowloon City Interchange, Pentland Street and Olympic Gardens. As other areas become available after completion of flyover constructions, they will be beautified also. The Department has also been assured of the co-operation of the Public Works Department in this worthwhile endeavour to improve the general appearance of the city and to provide amenities for the enjoyment of our people.
I support the motion.
MR. HILTON CHEONG-LEEN (In English):—Mr. Chairman, I don't particularly find flyovers attractive, but we are going to have more flyovers being built, and I suppose we have to live with them. So I, for one, do support the motion that steps should be taken to make our flyovers more attractive. Apart from shrubs and flowers, there is also one additional way how these flyovers can be more attractive, Mr. Chairman. I have in mind, particularly the flyover complex at Wan Chai leading in different directions, one direction over to Kowloon and another direction to Happy Valley. It could be possible to study whether these flyovers can be made more attractive with a re-arrangement of the lighting. I heard that people complained, drivers either of private cars or taxi drivers, saying that the lighting system is not as good as it ought to be, and if we do put additional shrubs and flowers onto that particular flyover complex, Mr. Chairman, it might even be more attractive in the evening if lighting was arranged so that they could be visible at night as well. And additionally, apart from making these flyovers more attractive by the addition of shrubs and trees and perhaps a re-arrangement of the lighting facilities, these flyovers could look that much more attractive at night and prove even more of an amenity. With these few words I would like to support the motion.
MR. PETER C. K. CHAN (In Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, after the construction of the flyovers, the use of open spaces underneath for the purpose of planting flowers and shrubs is, I think, worthy of support. Mr. SALES said this is a way to try to get the voters to one's side. I am not going to comment on this. But according to the previous record, a lot of the flowering shrubs are very beautiful, especially the exhibition sponsored by Mr. SALES every year, like the shrubs at Tsim Sha Tsui. I hope that if this is going to be successful, and perhaps we can give out prizes for flowering shrubs underneath the flyovers, then these flyovers would no longer be concrete forest. There will be
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