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WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 5, 1983
SIR EDWARD ALSO SAID THAT IMPROVEMENTS TO THE ROAD SYSTEM, RECOMMENDED IN THE COMPREHENSIVE TRANSPORT STUDY AND THE WHITE PAPER ON TRANSPORT POLICY, WERE CONTINUING.
+LINKS ACROSS THE BORDER, A RECENT FEATURE OF THE PROGRAMME, WILL BE EXPANDED. A SECOND BRIDGE WILL BE BUILT AT MAN KAM TO, THE SHA TAU KOK CROSSING WILL BE IMPROVED, AND PLANNING WILL CONTINUE FOR A ROAD LINK BETWEEN THE LOK MA CHAU CROSSING AND THE NEW TERRITORIES CIRCULAR ROAD, HE SAID.
THE GOVERNOR POINTED OUT THAT ALTHOUGH THE FIRST CHOICE FOR A SECOND VEHICULAR HARBOUR CROSSING, A BRIDGE AT LEI YUE MUN, HAD BEEN FOUND IMPRACTICABLE IN THE NEAR FUTURE FOR TECHNICAL REASONS, OTHER CROSSING OPTIONS WERE BEING INVESTIGATED.
HE SAID THESE INCLUDED BORED OR SUBMERGED TUNNELS AT LEI YUE MUN, BETWEEN TAI KOO SHING AND CHA KWO LING, OR ALONGSIDE THE EXISTING CROSS-HARBOUR TUNNEL.
ON PUBLIC TRANSPORT, SIR EDWARD SAID THAT:
*
*
THE KOWLOON-CANTON RAILWAY CORPORATION, WITH ITS ELECTRIFIED SERVICES AND DOUBLE-TRACKING, IS NOW CARRYING 150 000 PASSENGERS DAILY, THUS REDUCING CONGESTION ON THE MAIN TRUNK ROAD IN THE EASTERN NEW TERRITORIES;
THE TWO MAJOR FRANCHISED BUS COMPANIES HAVE INCREASED THEIR CARRYING CAPACITIES BY ABOUT 15 PER CENT AND INTRODUCED 12 NEW ROUTES AND HAVE ALSO COMPLETED ROUTE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES FOR THE NEXT TWO YEARS WHICH SHOULD RESULT IN FURTHER SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENTS TO EXISTING SERVICES AND THE OPENING OF ADDITIONAL ROUTES TO SERVE NEW DEVELOPMENT AREAS;
* WORK ON THE MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY ISLAND LINE IS CONTINUING ON SCHEDULE AND SHOULD, WHEN COMPLETED IN LATE 1985, BRING ABOUT A MAJOR REDUCTION IN TRAVELLING TIME TO AND FROM THE EASTERN PART OF HONG KONG ISLAND.
ON AIR SERVICES, SIR EDWARD SAID THAT ALTHOUGH HONG KONG COULD NOT, AND NEED NOT ON PRESENT TRAFFIC ESTIMATES, PROCEED WITH PLANS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A NEW AIRPORT, THE AIRPORT TERMINAL BUILDING AT KAI TAK WOULD BE EXPANDED.
+THIS WILL ENSURE THAT THE AIRPORT CAN CONTINUE TO HANDLE EFFICIENTLY OUR FUTURE AIR PASSENGER TRAFFIC: THIS IS FORECAST TO INCREASE FROM SOME 10 MILLION PASSENGERS IN 1984 TO ABOUT 18 MILLION IN 1990, HE EXPLAINED.
HE ALSO SAID THAT NEGOTIATIONS WERE PROGRESSING WITH A PRIVATE HELICOPTER COMPANY TO BUILD AN INTERNATIONAL HELIPORT ON THE WAN CHAI RECLAMATION FOR FUTURE FLIGHTS TO MACAU AND THE VARIOUS PARTS OF GUANGDONG.