WEDNESDAY, APRIL 22, 1981
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WORK ON TAI HANG ROAD FLYOVER STARTS NEXT MONTH
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THE 1981-82 ROAD BUILDING PROGRAMME OF THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT GOT OFF TO A FINE START TODAY (WEDNESDAY) WITH THE AWARD OF THE FIRST MAJOR ROAD CONTRACT THIS YEAR.
THE CONTRACT, WORTH $74 MILLION, IS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE TAI HANG ROAD FLYOVER.
IT WAS AWARDED TO LEIGHTON CONTRACTORS PTY. LTD.
MR YEUNG KIM-CHOY, CHIEF ENGINEER OF THE CONSULTANTS MANAGEMENT DIVISION OF THE PWD'S HIGHWAYS OFFICE, SAID WORK ON THE CONTRACT, WHICH ALSO INCLUDES THE CONSTRUCTION OF A PEDESTRIAN FOOTBRIDGE AND AN OFF-STREET BUS TERMINUS, WOULD START NEXT MONTH AND WOULD TAKE ABOUT 30 MONTHS TO COMPLETE.
HE SAID THE FLYOVER MEASURING 550 METRES IN LENGTH, WOULD RUN FROM THE LOWER END OF TAI HANG ROAD THROUGH MORETON TERRACE CROSSING CAUSEWAY ROAD TO JOIN GLOUCESTER ROAD ON THE WEST SIDE OF VICTORIA PARK.
INTENSIVE BUILDING DEVELOPMENT IN AREAS SERVED BY TAI HANG ROAD HAS GENERATED A CONSIDERABLE INCREASE IN TRAFFIC VOLUME ON THIS ROAD.
DURING PEAK HOURS, TRAFFIC CONGESTION OFTEN OCCURS AT THE JUNCTION OF TAI HANG ROAD AND TUNG LO WAN ROAD WHERE THE SITUATION IS FURTHER WORSENED BY THE LARGE PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENT, MAINLY SCHOOL CHILDREN, ACROSS THE ROADS.
WITH THE COMPLETION OF THE ELEVATED ROAD, MR YEUNG SAID, THE SITUATION WOULD BE IMPROVED AS TRAFFIC COMING DOWN OR GOING UP TA! HANG ROAD COULD AVOID A SERIES OF ROAD JUNCTIONS AND TRAFFIC LIGHTS IN THE AREA. THIS, IN TURN, SHOULD IMPROVE TRAFFIC FLOW IN CAUSEWAY BAY.
ON THE ALIGNMENT OF THE ELEVATED ROAD, HE SAID: IT HAS BEEN DESIGNED IN AN 'S' SHAPE IN ORDER TO MINIMISE THE ENCROACHMENT OF THE FLYOVER INTO THE SOUTH-WESTERN CORNER OF VICTORIA PARK.
+TO FACILITATE PEDESTRIAN MOVEMENT IN THE AREA, A 35-METRE LONG COVERED FOOTBRIDGE WILL BE BUILT ACROSS CAUSEWAY ROAD AT ITS JUNCTION WITH SHELTER STREET.+
REFERRING TO THE NEW BUS TERMINUS, MR YEUNG SAID IT WOULD BE LOCATED AT THE CORNER OF MORETON TERRACE AND TUNG LO WAN ROAD.
HE POINTED OUT THAT AT PRESENT BUS TERMINI IN THE AREA WERE SCATTERED IN THREE DIFFERENT PLACES -- AT THE BACK OF THE CAUSEWAY BAY MAGISTRACY BUILDING, KINGSTON STREET AND MORETON TERRACE.
THIS IS NOT SATISFACTORY, AS THE TERMINI AT THE LAST TWO SPOTS HAVE TAKEN UP THE KERB-SIDE SPACE, THUS AFFECTING PEDESTRIAN AND TRAFFIC CIRCULATION, MR YEUNG ADDED. +ADDITIONAL NEW BUS ROUTES TO SERVE THIS BUSY COMMERCIAL AND RESIDENTIAL AREA ARE ALSO HINDERED.+
THEREFORE, THE