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MONDAY, DECEMBER 29, 1986
THE REVIEW FOCUSED ON THE OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF EACH ROUTE GROUP; THE OPERATING COSTS AND REVENUES OF INDIVIDUAL BUS ROUTES AND GROUP OF ROUTES; AND FACTORS AFFECTING THE CMB FARE STRUCTURE - INCLUDING THE POPULATION DENSITY AND LAND USE DEVELOPMENT IN THE AREAS SERVED BY CMB BUSES.
IT WAS FOUND THAT THE DEMAND FOR BUS SERVICES IN THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT TENDED TO CONCENTRATE IN THE PEAK HOURS, UNIDIRECTIONAL AND NOT AS FULLY UTILISED WHEN COMPARED WITH BUS SERVICES OPERATING ON THE NORTHERN SHORE OF HONG KONG ISLAND.
MOREOVER, THE POPULATION DENSITY IN THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF ABERDEEN AREA, WAS COMPARATIVELY LOWER THAN OTHER DISTRICTS ON THE ISLAND.
BASED ON THE CONSIDERATIONS OF POPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT DENSITY AS WELL AS THE OPERATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE BUS SERVICES. THE DEPARTMENT CONCLUDED THAT SOME FARE DIFFERENTIALS BETWEEN THE URBAN AND THE SUBURBAN ROUTES GROUPS ARE NOT WITHOUT VALID JUSTIFICATION.
IT ALSO FOUND THAT THE SUBURBAN GROUP OF BUS ROUTES HAD NOT BEEN CROSS-SUBSIDISING OTHER GROUPS OF ROUTES AND THAT THE BUS SERVICES IN THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT WERE NOT CHARGING EXCESSIVE FARES INSOFAR AS THE REVENUES AND OPERATING COSTS WERE CONCERNED.
THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT BOARD MEMBERS WERE ALSO BRIEFED ON THE REVIEW'S RECOMMENDATIONS WHICH HAD RECENTLY BEEN ENDORSED BY THE TAC. THE RECOMMENDATIONS INCLUDED.
* CLASSIFYING THE ABERDEEN AREA (INCLUDING WAH FU, TIN WAN,
SHEK PAI WAN, WONG CHUK HANG AND AP LEI CHAU) AS +URBAN+ AREA IN ORDER TO REFLECT THE HIGH DENSITY OF DEVELOPMENT THERE, AND APPLYING THE URBAN FARE SCALE TO LOCAL ROUTES OPERATING WITHIN ABERDEEN. HOWEVER, +EXTERNAL+ ROUTES FROM ABERDEEN SHOULD CONTINUE TO BE CLASSIFIED AS +SUBURBAN+ ;
*
*
AMENDING THE STRUCTURE OF THE FARE BANDS FOR THE SUBURBAN EXPRESS GROUP OF ROUTES, SO AS TO CREATE ADDITIONAL FARE BANDS AT THE LOWER END OF THE SCALE FOR SHORTER ROUTES TO BE INTRODUCED IN THE FUTURE:
NARROWING THE FARE DIFFERENTIALS BETWEEN THE URBAN AND SUBURBAN GROUPS OF ROUTES WHEN CMB'S NEXT FARE REVISION IS DUE.
CMB HAS AGREED IN PRINCIPLE TO THE RECOMMENDATIONS BUT THE DETAILS OF ANY FARE REVISION WILL BE SUBJECT TO FURTHER SCRUTINY BY THE DEPARTMENT AND THE TAC.
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