July_1970 — Page 4

Underground report ready

The mass transit consultants looking into an underground railway system for Hong Kong expect to submit their report at the end of this month.

The director of public works announced last month that the consultants had made excellent progress. Precise route alignments and station loca- tions had been established and station and coach layouts had been conceived to match passenger volumes derived from passenger studies.

The coaches planned for Hong Kong were larger than those of the London underground system, capable of providing trains of a least twice the capacity. Soil tests had been carried out, and the special problem of heat build-up looked into.

Final cost estimates, the fare structure and the staged programme of construction were almost complete, said Mr. Robson. The cost of the full scheme would not be less than the HK$3,404 mil- lion given in the consultants' first report - nor would the first stage cost less than HK$1,500 mil- lion.

"Apart from engineering considerations, there will be serious financial as well as social and legisla- tive problems to be resolved. It is thus not possible for me to estimate the time which the Government will require to decide whether an underground rail- way system is to be built," Mr. Robson added.

New Federal Hotel at Ipoh

Ipoh Municipal Council has approved plans by the Federal Hotels chain for the construction of a M$5 million luxury hotel on a 22-acre site at the junction of Hugh Low Street and Brewster Road.

Architects, Palmer & Turner of Kuala Lumpur have prepared designs for an 11-storey rectangular block containing 150 guest rooms, a swimming pool with cabanas and a 16-lane bowling centre. The hotel facilities will include Turkish and sauna

baths, Chinese and European restaurants. night- club, discotheque and conference hall.

Work has just begun on the project and it is scheduled to be completed by mid-1972.

New markets planned

The 77-year-old Shaukiwan market is being demolished to make way for a modern three-storey building which will take nine to 12 months to com- plete.

The project includes a rooftop playground for children, a covered play area of 3,000 sq. ft. on the

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New Shaukiwan market

top floor, and bridges into the market from the nearby hillside housing estate. Plans are by the architectural staff of the public works department.

Another market, costing HK$750,000, is to be built at the junction of Ngau Tau Kok and Chun Wah Roads, Kowloon. Site formation is almost complete and work on the superstructure of the single storey building will begin next month.

Bangkok international shopping centre

A multi-level international shopping centre, in which each storey is reserved for a particular na-

Drawing of proposed Federal Hotel at Ipoh

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Far East BUILDER, July 1970