XN000022-1973-07-04 — Page 9

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Wednesday, July 4, 1973

Replying to another question by Mr. Cheong-Leen, the Financial

Secretary said the two franchised bus companies and the public light

buses between them carried well over three million passengers a day and

managed to keep an extremely mobile population on the move.

But the government was concerned, he said, with the quality of

existing services.

On many routes waiting times were unacceptably long, too many

buses broke down on the roads and so contributed to congestion and a

great number of buses, he said, were "tatty" and prone to overcrowding,

The government was also concerned with the proper role of public

light buses in Hong Kong's evolving transport system "for their present

role is not one which ought to be maintained indefinitely.

"

In far too many instances, he said, public light buses were

performing functions which, in terms of road-use, could be performed more

efficiently by franchised buses without any loss of convenience to the

passenger.

He was referring, in particular to the carriage of large numbers

of passengers non-stop over long routes,

"The problem is to take this trade away from public light buses

and get them to provide services in areas where the enfranchised buses

do not operate and other special services where their flexibility of

operation provides an advantage."

Mr. Haddon-Cave said these were difficult problems but not

insurmountable.

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