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WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1, 1977
+OTHER MAJOR PROJECTS INCLUDE THE FLYOVER CONNECTION BETWEEN POKFULAM ROAD AND CONNAUGHT ROAD WEST, TAI HANG ROAD AND LAU SIN STREET FLYOVERS, THE REMAINING STAGES OF THE ISLAND EAST CORRIDOR, ELEVATED ROAD ALONG CONNAUGHT ROAD CENTRAL, AND AP LEI CHAU BRIDGÉ. +
MR. PANG SAID THAT THE COMPREHENSIVE TRANSPORT STUDY WHICH WAS SUBMITTED TO GOVERNMENT LAST DECEMBER HAD USED THE LATEST TRANSPORTATION PLANNING TECHNIQUES AND NEW ANALYTICAL METHODS TO DETERMINE THE FUTURE ROAD NEEDS OF HONG KONG.
+ALL THE REPORT'S RECOMMENDATIONS ARE BEING STUDIED BY A GOVERNMENT TEAM, HEADED BY THE SECRETARY FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, FORMULATING POLICIES ON TRANSPORT, MR. PANG SAID, AND THEY WOULD WELCOME ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC+.
+ THE NETWORK PROPOSED BY PREVIOUS STUDIES CONSISTS BASICALLY OF A LIMITED MILEAGE OF NEW AND IMPROVED ROUTES CALLED PRIMARY DISTRIBUTORS, AND A SECONDARY SYSTEM OF IMPROVED EXISTING ROUTES, CALLED DISTRICT DISTRIBUTORS TO ACT AS FEEDERS AND CONNECTIONS BETWEEN THE PRIMARY DISTRIBUTOR NETWORK ELEMENTS AND THE EXISTING ROAD SYSTEM.+
BUT IN IMPLEMENTING THESE RECOMMENDATIONS, P.W.D. ROAD DESIGNERS ARE CONSTRAINED BY EXTREMELY HIGH BUILDING DENSITIES AND THE DIFFICULT TERRAIN, MR. PANG SAID.
+ IN THE BUILT UP AREAS, BUILDING NEW ROADS OR WIDENING EXISTING STREETS WOULD BE PROHIBITIVELY EXPENSIVE BECAUSE OF THE HIGH COST OF ACQUISITION, MR. PANG SAID,
+THEREFORE ROAD IMPROVEMENTS IN THESE AREAS USUALLY TAKE THE FORM OF ELEVATED ROADWAYS AND RAMPS ALONG EXISTING ROAD RESERVES OR ONLY LIMITED WIDENING,
IN A FEW WATERFRONT LOCATIONS, NEW ROADS CAN BE CONSTRUCTED ON RECLAIMED LAND, WHILE INLAND THE MAJOR FACTORS AFFECTING ROAD LOCATION ARE THE LIMITATIONS OF GEOMETRIC DESIGN STANDARDS AND THE ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS TO THESE IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN.
MR. PANG SAID THAT BECAUSE OF THESE RESTRICTIONS, IT IS OBVIOUS THAT IN MANY CASES, THE DESIGN SPEEDS AND LEVELS OF SERVICE PROVIDED IN HONG KONG WOULD BE LOWER THAN WOULD BE USED FOR OTHER WESTERN COUNTRIES.
+ BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, EVERY ATTEMPT HAS BEEN MADE TO OBTAIN HIGH TRAFFIC CAPACITIES BECAUSE OF THE FORECAST DEMANDS FOR HIGHWAYS.+
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