XN000022-1990-05-23 — Page 17

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WEDNESDAY, MAY 23, 1990

HONG KONG PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE

HONG KONG

IS

PLANNING SENSIBLY AND IMAGINATIVELY FOR THE

FUTURE, NOT JUST TO 1997 BUT WELL INTO THE NEXT CENTURY.

STATING THIS AT A U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE CONFERENCE ON HONG KONG INFRASTRUCTURE IN WASHINGTON D.C. TODAY (WEDNESDAY), THE SECRETARY FOR WORKS, MR KENNETH KWOK, SAID THE PROJECTS THAT HONG KONG WOULD BE TACKLING OVER THE NEXT FEW YEARS WERE HUGE, EVEN BY INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS.

"BUT WE HAVE A GOOD TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESSFULLY HANDLING LARGE PROGRAMMES AND CHALLENGES BEFORE," MR KWOK STRESSED.

ON AIRPORT AND RELATED DEVELOPMENT, MR KWOK SAID THE GOVERNMENT HAD DECIDED THAT THE NEW AIRPORT WOULD BE BUILT AT CHEK LAP KOK AFTER A DETAILED SITE SEARCH INVOLVING MORE THAN 30 INITIAL OPTIONS.

"THE PRELIMINARY PLAN WAS TO SEPARATE THE TWO RUNWAYS BY 900 METRES.

BUT WE ARE GIVING SERIOUS CONSIDERATION TO INCREASING THE RUNWAY SEPARATION ΤΟ

TO 1,300 METRES FOR A POSSIBLE BETTER PLANNING LAYOUT AS WELL AS TO ALLOW BOTH RUNWAYS ΤΟ BE OPERATED FULLY INDEPENDENTLY.

"THIS SUBJECT WILL BE FURTHER EXAMINED AS PART OF THE US$12 MILLION MASTER LAYOUT PLAN AND ENGINEERING STUDY WHICH WOULD VERY SHORTLY BE COMMISSIONED, HE SAID.

HE ADDED THAT THE STUDY WOULD ALSO COVER THE FULL DESIGN OF CIVIL ENGINEERING WORKS FOR THE AIRPORT AND AN ASSESSMENT OF THEIR

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT.

THE TARGET DATE FOR THE COMMISSIONING OF THE FIRST OF THE TWO RUNWAYS IS EARLY 1997.

BIDS FOR THE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACT FOR THE ADVANCE WORKS, ESTIMATED TO COST SOME US$40 MILLION, WOULD BE CALLED BY THE MIDDLE OF THIS YEAR FOR A ONE YEAR CONTRACT WORKS PERIOD, WITH A ONE YEAR OPTIONAL EXTENSION FOR US$25 MILLION WORTH OF EXTRA WORKS.

"THIS WILL BE FOLLOWED BY INVITING BIDS FOR THE MAIN SITE

CONTRACT FOR SOME 700 HECTARES IN MID DEVELOPMENT

1991 AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS WILL FOLLOW. THE NEW AIRPORT ITSELF IS EXPECTED TO COST IN TOTAL ABOUT US$4.4 BILLION," HE SAID.

BE

ON TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE, MR KWOK SAID THE AIRPORT WOULD

WITH THE URBAN AREAS BY MEANS OF A SIX-LANE EXPRESSWAY LINKED

AND A DEDICATED RAIL SERVICE.

"THE NORTH LANTAU EXPRESSWAY WOULD BE A DUAL THREE-LANE HIGHWAY RUNNING ALONG THE NORTHERN COASTLINE OF LANTAU.

"THE PROJECT