SUNDAY, MARCH 9,
1986
IMPACT OF MTR ISLAND LINE ANALYSED
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THE NUMBER OF DAILY PASSENGERS ON BUSES DROPPED BY AN OVERALL AVERAGE OF 14 PER CENT AND ON CROSS-HAR BOUR FERRIES BY SEVEN PER CENT BETWEEN JUNE AND DECEMBER LAST YEAR COMPARED WITH MARCH FIGURES.
THIS WAS REVEALED IN THE TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT'S SUMMARY REPORT ON THE IMPACT OF THE MTR ISLAND LINE ON OTHER PUBLIC TRANSPORT MODES.
IN MARCH, TWO MONTHS BEFORE THE OPENING OF THE ISLAND LINE, DAILY PATRONAGE ON BUSES WAS 1 275 600 PASSENGERS AND ON CROSS- HARBOUR FERRIES 310 300 PASSENGERS.
TRAMS, HOWEVER, SUFFERED VIRTUALLY NO PASSENGER LOSS. BETWEEN JUNE AND DECEMBER, THE OVERALL AVERAGE DECREASE WAS 0.8 PER CENT COMPARED WITH MARCH WHEN THEY WERE CARRYING 335 400 PASSENGERS DAILY.
DURING THE PERIOD UNDER REVIEW, MTR, KCR AND GREEN MINIBUSES SHOWED HEALTHY GAINS IN PATRONAGE,
MTR GAINED 25 PER CENT COMPARED WITH MARCH WHEN IT WAS CARRYING 1 111 600 PASSENGERS DAILY- KCR PASSENGER VOLUME ROSE BY 12 PER CENT AND GREEN MINIBUS PATRONAGE INCREASED BY EIGHT PER CENT.
THE HARDEST HIT WAS CMB CORRIDOR EXPRESS SERVICES, WHICH INCLUDE ROUTES SUCH AS NO. 10A, 108, 20, 21, 22, 80 AND 81M. BETWEEN JUNE AND DECEMBER, THE AVERAGE PASSENGER VOLUME ON THESE ROUTES WAS 44 PER CENT BELOW THE MARCH FIGURES. NEXT CAME CMB SERVICES VIA THE ISLAND EASTERN CORRIDOR, WHICH REGISTERED AN AVERAGE DECREASE OF 30 PER CENT.
DURING THE SAME PERIOD, CORRIDOR URBAN BUS SERVICES, SUCH AS ROUTES NO. 2, 16 AND 82 WHICH RUN PARALLEL TO THE ISLAND LINE, REPORTED AN AVERAGE PASSENGER LOSS OF 14 PER CENT WHILE ROUTES WHICH ARE ONLY PARTLY PARALLEL WITH THE MTR EXTENSION, SUCH AS NO. 5, 10, 24 AND 81, SUFFERED AN AVERAGE DECLINE OF 11 PER CENT.
AS FOR CMB AND KMB CROSS-HARBOUR SERVICES, THE AVERAGE DECREASE IN PASSENGER VOLUME WAS 17 PER CENT. IN AUGUST, PATRONAGE PLUNGED TO A RECORD LOW OF 22 PER CENT BELOW THE MARCH FIGURES BUT IT GRADUALLY ROSE BACK TO JUST 12 PER CENT BELOW THE MARCH VOLUME IN DECEMBER.
THE ONLY BUS SERVICES WHICH REGISTERED A PASSENGER GROWTH WERE CMB'S FEEDER ROUTES TO MTR STATIONS. AN AVERAGE INCREASE OF 19 PER CENT WAS ACHIEVED DURING THE SEVEN MONTHS UNDER REVIEW,
/CROSS-HARBOUR