XN000022-1994-01-13 — Page 13

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THURSDAY, JANUARY 13, 1994

THIS PARTICULAR PROPOSAL, I THINK IS AN EXTREMELY SENSIBLE ONE. THE HONOURABLE MEMBER IS ENTIRELY RIGHT TO SAY THAT ECONOMIC CONVERGENCE REQUIRES US TO LOOK MUCH MORE CREATIVELY AT INFRASTRUCTURE CONVERGENCE AS WELL. I MENTIONED EARLIER, THE DEVELOPMENT IN CHINA OF THE RAILWAY NETWORK AND THE IMPORTANCE OF MAKING SURE THAT OUR RAILWAY SYSTEM IN HONG KONG IS IMPROVED AND LINKS UP WITH THE NORTH-SOUTH RAILWAY ROUTES IN CHINA, SO I HOPE THAT THE HONOURABLE MEMBER'S BABY CAN BE BROUGHT TO GLORIOUS ADULTHOOD AS RAPIDLY AS POSSIBLE. AND IF THE HONOURABLE MEMBER HAS ANY PARTICULAR SUGGESTIONS ABOUT HOW WE COULD CARRY THAT IDEA FORWARD, I WOULD BE DELIGHTED TO HEAR FROM HIM ABOUT IT.

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MR EDWARD HO: GOVERNOR, YOU HAVE MENTIONED QUITE A NUMBER OF HUGE ROADWORKS PROJECTS AND I THINK WE WELCOME THEM LIKE ROUTE THREE BUT THE PROBLEM SOMETIMES IS IN THE BUILT-UP AREAS, FOR INSTANCE IN KOWLOON. AS YOU KNOW, THE TOWN PLANNING BOARD HAS JUST ISSUED 16 OZPS FOR KOWLOON, WHICH LIMITS DEVELOPMENT TO THE POTENTIAL PERMITTED BY THE BUILDING PLANNING REGULATIONS AND THE WHOLE CONSTRAINT HAS BEEN ON THE TRANSPORT NETWORK. I THINK WHAT'S HAPPENED IS THAT TOWN PLANNING AND BUILDING DEVELOPMENT ARE CONSTRAINED BY GOVERNMENT'S WILLINGNESS TO IMPROVE ROAD NETWORKS WITHIN THE BUILT-UP AREAS AND CONSEQUENTLY OUR PEOPLE HAVE TO MOVE AWAY TO NEW TOWNS AND THEN WE HAVE TO CATCH UP WITH BUILDING ROADS, LINKING THEM WITH THE WORKPLACE AND SO FORTH. SO MY QUESTION IS: IS THERE ANY PLAN FOR GOVERNMENT TO TRY TO IMPROVE, SAY, ROADWORKS WITHIN THE BUILT-UP AREAS, ESPECIALLY IN KOWLOON?

GOVERNOR: YES. WE ARE SPENDING A LARGE AMOUNT OF MONEY ON IMPROVED TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT, FOR EXAMPLE, COMPUTERISED SCHEMES WHICH INCREASE TRAFFIC FLOW WITHOUT THE PROVISION OF NEW ROADS BUT THERE ARE OBVIOUSLY LIMITS то THE IMPACT THAT YOU CAN MAKE THROUGH TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT ON THE PROBLEM OF TRANSPORTATION.

THERE IS ONE ISSUE WHICH IS RELEVANT TO THIS WHICH I THINK CAUSES CONSIDERABLE CONCERN TO MANY ORDINARY RESIDENTS AS WELL AS ΤΟ MEMBERS OF THIS COUNCIL, AND THAT IS THE IMPACT ON AN ALREADY DIFFICULT TRANSPORT SCENE OF ENDLESS ROAD OPENINGS BY PUBLIC UTILITIES. IT IS AN ISSUE WHICH IS RAISED FAIRLY REGULARLY IN THE NEWSPAPERS BY ONE OR TWO CORRESPONDENTS, IN RELATION NOT ONLY TO KOWLOON BUT FOR THE SOUTH OF THIS ISLAND AS WELL. I KNOW THERE IS ONE CORRESPONDENT WHO WRITES REGULARLY ABOUT THE PROBLEMS IN DEEP WATER BAY AND THE ROADS IN THAT AREA. I THINK WE HAVE 'TO LOOK AT THE QUESTION OF ROAD OPENINGS, EXCAVATIONS THAT IS, MORE IMAGINATIVELY. WE ARE ASKING THE SECRETARY FOR WORKS TO DO THAT AT THE MOMENT. HAVE GOT TO TALK TO THE PUBLIC UTILITIES TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY BEHAVE A BIT MORE SENSIBLY AND I AM NOT AGAINST LOOKING AT ISSUES LIKE THE USE OF CHARGING, IN ORDER TO TRY TO MAKE SURE THAT ROAD EXCAVATIONS, ROAD OPENINGS, ARE AS SHORT AS POSSIBLE AND DEALT WITH AS SENSIBLY AS POSSIBLE BY, FOR EXAMPLE, COVERING CUTS IN THE ROAD. THAT IS THE SORT OF SIMPLE ISSUE WHICH CAN MAKE AN IMPACT ON TRANSPORT TRAFFIC MOVEMENT WITHOUT GREAT EXPENSE.

WHICH IN

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BUT OVERALL, I THINK THE HONOURABLE MEMBER HAS RAISED A MATTER GOES BACK TO THE EARLY QUESTION OF THE EXTENT OF CAR OWNERSHIP A SMALL COMMUNITY LIKE THIS. OUR CITIES WEREN'T BUILT FOR THE INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE, THEY WERE BUILT FOR HUMAN BEINGS.

/MRS MIRIAM

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