WEDNESDAY, APRIL 30, 1986
+THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT CONSIDER IT NECESSARY TO INTRODUCE ANY ADDITIONAL MEASURES AT THIS TIME, HE SAID.
HE POINTED OUT THAT IN THE PAST THREE YEARS, OVER 875 000 CASES, EXCLUDING FIXED PENALTY TICKET CASES, HAD BEEN INITIATED BY POLICE IN MAGISTRATES' COURTS.
+ IN NEARLY ALL OF THEM, POLICE OFFICERS WERE REQUESTED TO ATTEND AS PROSECUTION WITNESSES, + HE SAID.
+OF THESE CASES, 28 WERE DISMISSED BECAUSE POLICE OFFICERS WERE NOT PRESENT IN COURT WHEN THEY WERE CALLED TO GIVE EVIDENCE.+
MR THOMAS SAID HE WAS NOT AWARE OF ANY CASES DISMISSED IN THE HIGHER COURTS FOR THIS REASON DURING THE LAST THREE YEARS.
'MUCH CHEAPER' TO IMPROVE EXISTING ROADS
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THE UPGRADED CONNAUGHT ROAD PROJECT AND IMPROVEMENTS TO POK FU LAM ROAD WILL EASE TRAFFIC CONGESTION BETWEEN WESTERN AND CENTRAL, THE SECRETARY FOR TRANSPORT, THE HON JAN MACPHERSON, TOLD THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY (WEDNESDAY).
REPLYING TO A QUESTION BY THE HON LIU LIT-FOR, MR MACPHERSON SAID IT WOULD BE +VERY MUCH CHEAPER+ TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS TO THE EXISTING ROAD SYSTEM THAN TO BUILD A MAJOR NEW TRUNK ROAD SUCH AS THE PROPOSED ROUTE 7 RUNNING ALONG THE COAST FROM WESTERN TO ABERDEEN, AND COSTING ABOUT $1 000 MILLION.
+ONLY WHEN ADDITIONAL CAPACITY CANNOT BE SQUEEZED OUT OF THE EXISTING ROAD SYSTEM CAN SUCH A LARGE INVESTMENT BE JUSTIFIED,+ HE SAID.
PRESENT PLANNING DID NOT ENVISAGE BUILDING OF ROUTE 7 BEING UNDERTAKEN UNTIL SOME TIME AFTER COMPLETION OF THE CONNAUGHT ROAD PROJECT AND THE POK FU LAM ROAD IMPROVEMENTS.
+HOWEVER IT IS RECOGNISED THAT BY THE EARLY 1990'S THIS MAY BE THE ONLY FEASIBLE WAY OF INCREASING ROAD CAPACITY IN THIS CORRIDOR, + HE ADDED.
MEANWHILE, HE SAID, TENDERS FOR THE CONNAUGHT ROAD PROJECT WOULD BE INVITED SHORTLY. TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT ARRANGEMENTS AND WORK TO DIVERT UTILITIES HAD ALREADY BEGUN IN ADVANCE OF THE MAIN CONTRACTS.
/+THIS PROJECT