XN000022-1982-05-23 — Page 3

SUNDAY, MAY 23, 1982

COASTAL FERRY LINKS WERE FURTHER IMPROVED WITH THE INTRODUCTION OF THE SERVICES FROM TUEN MUN AND A NEW NETWORK FROM A NEW PIER AT CHAI WAN.

THE NUMBER OF PASSENGER JOURNEYS ON ALL FORMS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT INCREASED BY A STAGGERING 89 MILLION COMPARED WITH 1980, LARGELY DUE TO THE GROWING POPULARITY OF THE MTR.

HE DESCRIBED HONG KONG'S EXISTING PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM AS BEING SECOND TO NONE IN TERMS OF INTENSITY, PRODUCTIVITY AND DIVERSITY.

THE COMPREHENSIVE RANGE OF TRANSPORT SERVICES AVAILABLE LAST YEAR INCLUDED SOME 3 500 FRANCHISED BUSES AND COACHES, 4 350 MINIBUSES, 11 000 TAXIS, 165 DOUBLE-DECK TRAMS, 100 FERRY VESSELS, 60 UNDERGROUND TRAINS OPERATED BY THE MASS TRANSIT RAILWAY, AND THE KCR WHICH WAS IN THE PROCESS OF BEING ELECTRIFIED.

THE REPORT FORECAST THE ACCELERATED DEVELOPMENT OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT MORE TAILORED TO LOCAL NEEDS. MAXICABS WOULD CONTINUE TO BE EXPANDED, WHILE A NEW CATEGORY OF RESIDENTIAL COACHES WOULD ENABLE RESIDENTS OF AREAS INADEQUATELY SERVED BY FRANCHISED SERVICES TO MANAGE THEIR OWN BUS SERVICES.

TURNING TO TAXI LICENCES, HE SAID THE DEPARTMENT CONTINUED TO ISSUE NEW LICENCES AT A RATE OF 100 A MONTH FOR THE URBAN AREAS AND 50 FOR THE NEW TERRITORIES.

+ALTHOUGH THIS HAS RESULTED IN SOME IMPROVEMENTS IN AVAILABILITY AND A NOTICEABLE DROP IN TENDER PRICES, SHORTAGES STILL OCCUR, PARTICULARLY IN WET WEATHER AND IN LATE AFTERNOONS WHEN DRIVERS CHANGE SHIFT, HE ADDED.

ON ROAD CONGESTION, MR ARMSTRONG-WRIGHT SAID THAT ONCE AGAIN AN ALARMING INCREASE IN THE TOTAL NUMBER OF VEHICLES WAS RECORDED IN 1981 WITH A CORRESPONDING INCREASE IN TRAFFIC FLOW IN MOST AREAS.

+THERE WAS A NET INCREASE OF 30 000 REGISTERED VEHICLES LAST YEAR BRINGING THE TOTAL TO OVER 330 000.

+THIS, COUPLED WITH THE CONTINUING INTENSIVE LAND DEVELOPMENT, PLACES AN ENORMOUS STRAIN ON OUR PUBLIC TRANSPORT SYSTEM.

+WITH SOME 280 VEHICLES PER KILOMETRE OF ROAD, HE CONTINUED, +AND WITH THE DENSITY OF POPULATION IN THE URBAN AREAS HIGHER THAN PRACTICALLY ANYWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD, IT WAS NOT SURPRISING THAT OUR STREETS WERE CROWDED AND CONGESTED.+