XN000022-1979-02-27 — Page 8

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1979

7

$43.8M ROAD CONTRACT FOR NT SIGNED

*****

THE $250 MILLION GOVERNMENT ROAD CONSTRUCTION AND IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMME FOR FANLING AND SHEK WU HUI GOT OFF TO A GOOD START TODAY (TUESDAY) WITH THE SIGNING OF THE FIRST CONTRACT FOR THE AMBITIOUS SCHEME.

THE CONTRACT, WORTH MORE THAN $43.8 MILLION, WAS AWARDED TO FOOK LEE CONSTRUCTION CO. LTD.

IT WAS FORMALLY SIGNED BY MR. GEORGE CHIEN, CHIEF ENGINEER OF THE TAI PO AND FANDING DEVELOPMENT OFFICE OF THE PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT AND MR. HO SAI-CHU, DIRECTOR AND MANAGER OF THE COMPANY.

SPEAKING AFTER THE SIGNING CEREMONY, MR. CHIEN SAID THE CONTRACT WAS THE FIRST IN A COMPREHENSIVE ROAD CONSTRUCTION AND IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMME AT FANLING AND SHEK WU HUI TO BE COMPLETED OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS.

THE PROGRAMME FORMS PART OF THE GOVERNMENT'S $2,200 MILLION PLAN TO TURN THE TWO AREAS INTO MODERN TOWNSHIPS FOR 170,000 PEOPLE UNDER THE NEW TOWN DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME.

IMPROVED COMMUNICATIONS, HE ADDED, WOULD BE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE DEVELOPMENT.

+THE CONTRACT SIGNED TODAY INVOLVES, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE CONSTRUCTION OF A DISTRIBUTOR ROAD,+ MR. CHIEN SAID.

+MEASURING ABOUT 2.4 KILOMETRES, THE NEW ROAD WILL BE A MAJOR LINK BETWEEN THE FUTURE NEW TERRITORIES CIRCULAR ROAD NEAR WO HOP SHEK AND THE SHEK WU HUI TOWNSHIP.+

HE SAID THE ROAD WOULD BE A DUAL TWO-LANE CARRIAGEWAY COMPLETE WITH FOOTPATHS AND A CYCLE TRACK.

THE CONTRACT ALSO COVERS THE CONSTRUCTION OF SIX SUBWAYS AND A FOOTBRIDGE FOR CYCLISTS AND PEDESTRIANS.

WORK WILL START EARLY NEXT MONTH AND WILL TAKE ABOUT

21 MONTHS TO COMPLETE.

MR. CHIEN SAID THE FULL PROGRAMME WOULD EVENTUALLY PROVIDE A DUAL TWO-LANE CARRIAGEWAY FROM TAI PO TO SHEUNG SHUI.

THE PROJECT HAS BEEN DESIGNED, AND CONSTRUCTION WILL BE SUPERVISED, BY THE CONSULTING ENGINEERS, MAUNSELL CONSULTANTS ASIA, FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF PWD.

18