XN000022-1983-01-05 — Page 8

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WE DAY, JANUARY 5, 1983

IN ADDITION TO THIS REGULAR ATTENTION, HE POINTED CUT THAT TAI PAK TERRACE AND KWONG HON TERRACE IN WESTERN DISTRICT MENTIONED BY MR WONG HAD BEEN THE SUBJECT OF CLEAN-UP OPERATIONS IN THE RECENT CLEAN HONG KONG CAMPAIGN.

+THE STREETS THEMSELVES ARE PRIVATELY OWNED AND IT IS POSSIBLE THAT SOME IMPROVEMENT TO THE ENVIRONMENT WOULD ALSO BE ACHIEVED IF THEY WERE PUBLICLY OWNED.

+THE PROBLEMS OF MANAGEMENT AND MAINTENANCE THAT PRIVATE STREETS POSE IS CURRENTLY BEING EXAMINED WITHIN THE GOVERNMENT,+ MR AKERS-JONES SAID.

TUEN MUN 'A MASSIVE AND EXCITING ENTERPRISE'

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ALTHOUGH TUEN MUN IS 32 KILOMETRES AWAY FROM THE OLDER URBAN AREAS, A LONG WAY IN HONG KONG TERMS, ATTITUDES ARE CHANGING AND INDICATIONS ARE THAT THE NEW TOWN IS BECOMING A GOOD PLACE TO LIVE AND BRING UP A FAMILY.

THE REGIONAL SECRETARY FOR NEW TERRITORIES, THE HON IAN MACPHERSON, MADE THIS OBSERVATION IN LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL TODAY IN REPLY TO A QUESTION BY DR THE HON HO KAM-FAI ON THE POPULATION BUILD-UP, TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENTS AND JOB OPPORTUNITIES IN TUEN MUN.

DESCRIBING THE NEW TOWN AS +A MASSIVE AND EXCITING ENTERPRISE+ HE SAID THAT ITS PRESENT POPULATION OF JUST UNDER 200 000 WOULD INCREASE AT AN AVERAGE OF SOME 40 000 PEOPLE PER ANNUM OVER THE NEXT FIVE YEARS, OF WHOM 30 000 WOULD BE ACCOMMODATED IN PUBLIC HOUSING EACH YEAR,

ON TRANSPORT, MR MACPHERSON SAID THE ROAD NETWORK WAS GENERALLY ON TIME AND MAJOR ROAD WORKS WERE CONTINUING ON SCHEDULE.

STRESSING THAT THERE HAD NOT BEEN ANY SERIOUS DELAY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE, HE SAID THE TUEN MUN HIGHWAY WOULD BE FULLY DUAL THREE-LANE VERY SHORTLY.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT REQUIREMENTS AT THIS STAGE OF THE NEW TOWN'S DEVELOPMENT WERE BEING MET BY MORE THAN 10 BUS ROUTES, HOVERFERRY SERVICE, AND PUBLIC LIGHT BUSES, CARRYING A TOTAL OF SOME 130 000 PEOPLE A DAY.

/IN ADDITION,