XN000022-1981-10-18 — Page 2

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18, 1981

BUS PRIORITY SCHEMES SPEEDING MOVEMENT OF COMMUTERS

*****

MAJOR BUS PRIORITY SCHEMES OPERATING ON HONG KONG ISLAND AND IN KOWLOON ARE SPEEDING THE MOVEMENT OF THOUSANDS OF COMMUTERS EACH DAY, ACCORDING TO BEFORE-AND-AFTER STUDIES CARRIED OUT BY THE TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT.

THE CHIEF TRANSPORT OFFICER IN CHARGE OF THE DEPARTMENT'S TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT DIVISION, MR ALAN LUI, SAID TODAY THAT THE STUDIES, INVOLVING BUS-ONLY LANES OPERATING IN MID-LEVELS, HONG KONG ISLAND, AND IN SHANGHAI STREET AND JUNCTION ROAD, KOWLOON, +ARE CONVINCING PROOF OF THE BENEFITS TO BE DERIVED FROM PROVIDING PRIORITY FOR VEHICLES WHICH MOVE THE GREATEST NUMBER OF PEOPLE.+

HE SAID THAT A SURVEY, CARRIED OUT SHORTLY AFTER THE MID- LEVELS BUS PRIORITY SCHEME WAS INTRODUCED IN APRIL 1974, REVEALED A 48 PER CENT INCREASE IN BUS CARRYING CAPACITY, A 30 PER CENT INCREASE IN BUS PASSENGERS AND A 20 PER CENT REDUCTION IN BUS JOURNEY TIMES.

A MORE RECENT SURVEY IN MARCH 1981 FURTHER INDICATED THAT THE BUS-ONLY LANE WAS STILL BEING WELL USED, THE LANE OPERATES BETWEEN 7 AM AND 11 PM DAILY ALONG A SECTION OF THE WESTBOUND CARRIAGEWAY OF CAINE ROAD AND BONHAM ROAD, AND A SECTION OF THE EASTBOUND CARRIAGEWAY OF ROBINSON ROAD.

+MORE THAN 80 BUSES SERVING EIGHT ROUTES USE THE LANE EACH PEAK-HOUR AND, BECAUSE THE BUSES ARE ABLE TO TRAVEL AT AN AVERAGE SPEED OF 17 KİLOMETRES AN HOUR, PASSENGER WAITING TIME AT BUS STOPS RARELY EXCEEDS SIX MINUTES, MR LUI SAID.

+KOWLOON'S FIRST MAJOR BUS PRIORITY SCHEME, INTRODUCED IN SHANGHAI STREET IN MARCH 1976, HAS BEEN SUCH A SUCCESS THAT IT HAS BECOME ONE OF THE MOST HEAVILY USED BUS-ONLY LANES IN THE WORLD IN TERMS OF BUS VOLUME.

+A SURVEY CARRIED OUT IN MARCH SHOWED THAT THE BUSIEST SECTION OF THE BUS LANE WAS USED BY SOME 28 BUS ROUTES, WHICH OPERATED MORE THAN 200 BUSES AN HOUR AT AN AVERAGE JOURNEY SPEED OF ABOUT 15 KILOMETRES AN HOUR DURING PEAK PERIODS.+

MR LUI SAID THE SHANGHAI STREET BUS LANE, WHICH OPERATES ON THE NORTHBOUND CARRIAGEWAY BETWEEN 7 AM AND 11 PM, WAS ORIGINALLY INTRODUCED TO MAINTAIN A REASONABLE LEVEL OF BUS SERVICES IN WEST KOWLOON WHEN TRAFFIC ALONG NATHAN ROAD WAS DISRUPTED BY CONSTRUCTION OF THE MODIFIED INITIAL SYSTEM OF THE MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY.

+HOWEVER, THE LANE HAS BEEN SO SUCCESSFUL THAT WE HAVE DECIDED

TO KEEP IT RUNNING INDEFINITELY, HE SAID.

MR LUI SAID THAT SIMILAR SUCCESS HAD BEEN ACHIEVED IN JUNCTION ROAD BY THE INTRODUCTION IN JANUARY OF KOWLOON'S MOST RECENT BUS PRIORITY SCHEME.

+THE BUS-ONLY LANE HAS BROUGHT ABOUT A 35 PER CENT IMPROVEMENT IN THE JOURNEY SPEED OF BUSES SERVING FIVE ROUTES, RESULTING IN IMPROVED REGULARITY AND A REDUCTION IN PASSENGER WAITING TIME AT BUS STOPS, HE SAID.