THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 1982
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PARTIAL OPENING OF ABERDEEN TUNNEL
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THE ABERDEEN TUNNEL WILL BE PARTIALLY OPENED TOMORROW (FRIDAY), WITH TWO-WAY TRAFFIC OCCUPYING ONE TUBE OF THE TUNNEL.
FOR THE FIRST DAY, THE TUNNEL WILL BE OPEN FROM 10 AM TO 10.30 PM. FROM SATURDAY, IT WILL BE OPEN FROM 6.30 AM TO 10.30 PM DAILY.
TOLLS
A $2-TOLL WILL BE CHARGED FOR ALL TYPES OF VEHICLES. WILL BE COLLECTED AT BOOTHS LOCATED AT THE ABERDEEN END OF THE TUNNEL.
MR HAROLD BEATON, PRINCIPAL GOVERNMENT HIGHWAY ENGINEER, SAID THAT THE TUNNEL TRAFFIC CONTROL AND SURVEILLANCE EQUIPMENT WAS NOT YET FULLY OPERATIONAL.
HOWEVER, HE SAID, THE TUNNEL WOULD BE ADEQUATELY LIT AND VENTILATED AND ESSENTIAL SERVICES WOULD BE AVAILABLE TO DEAL WITH BREAKDOWNS OR OTHER EMERGENCIES.
PATROL
THE TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT WILL OPERATE THE TUNNEL. VEHICLES WILL BE BASED AT EACH END OF THE TUNNEL TO DEAL WITH ANY INCIDENTS IN THE TUNNEL AND ON THE APPROACHES.
PATROL STAFF WILL BE ABLE TO CONTACT THE CONTROL ROOM BY RADIO TO ENSURE SPEEDY RESPONSE TO ANY EVENT REQUIRING ATTENTION.
MOTORISTS NEEDING ASSISTANCE IN THE TUNNEL WILL FIND EMERGENCY NICHES, LIT BY AN ILLUMINATED SYMBOL, AT 100-METRE INTERVALS. EACH NICHE CONTAINS A TELEPHONE CONNECTED TO THE CONTROL ROOM, FIRE EXTINGUISHERS AND A FIRE ALARM PUSH BUTTON.
IN THE INITIAL OPENING PERIOD, CERTAIN LANE SIGNALS AND ADVISORY SIGNS WILL NOT BE IN FULL OPERATION. FINAL WORK ON THIS EQUIPMENT LINKED TO THE COMPUTER CONTROLLED SYSTEM WILL BE CONTINUED.
UNFORTUNATELY IT IS NOT YET POSSIBLE AT THIS STAGE TO PREDICT THE COMPLETION OF THE FULL COMPUTER CONTROLLED SYSTEM, BUT IT IS ANTICIPATED THAT THE LINKING AND TESTING OF THE EQUIPMENT WILL TAKE SEVERAL MONTHS.
THE SPEED LIMIT FOR THE TWO-WAY, SINGLE TUBE OPERATION WILL BE 30 M.P.H. NO LANE CHANGING OR OVERTAKING WILL BE PERMITTED ACROSS THE DOUBLE WHITE LINE.
VEHICLES OVER FIVE METRES IN HEIGHT WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO USE THE TUNNEL. CERTAIN OTHER TYPES OF VEHICLES WILL ALSO BE PROHIBITED, IN LINE WITH THE LEGISLATION APPLYING TO OTHER TUNNELS IN HONG KONG.
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