39 -
(b)
the terminating points and stopping places proposed by applicants were not acceptable from a traffic management point of view.
The average time taken to process and approve a residents' service application is three months. Cases which require a more detailed examination of routeing and terminal points take a slightly longer time. At the end of December 1996, 36 applications were being processed.
During the past three years, a total of 32 cases of illegal operation of non- franchised bus routes were identified, and a breakdown is annexed. The numbers of illegal bus routes operated in Tuen Mun and Sha Tin were higher than those in other districts.
The problem of illegal operation of non-franchised bus routes is not deteriorating. The number of illegal bus routes declined from 19 in 1995 to 9 in 1996. All the nine illegal bus routes have ceased operation at the end of December 1996.
End
Annex
No. of identified cases
1994
4
1995
19
1996
9
Total
32