Capacity of Road System
14.6 The proposed access to the Terminal from the existing 6-lane primary-distributor Kwai Chung Road would ensure rapid travelling to Kowloon and to the main-road system serving the New Territories. The Traffic Engineering Division anticipate that the existing and planned road system would easily be able to accommodate the forecast build-up of traffic generated by the Terminal. It is relevant to note that the Long Term Road Study Report proposes widening Kwai Chung Road to 8 lanes as part of its recommended Stage 4, i.e. around 1986.
Containers on Roads
14.7
Most of the containers to be used at the Terminal are expected to be 8 ft. wide and 8 ft. or 8 ft. high; their lengths would range from 20 to 40 ft. The present maximum weights are 20 tons for standard 20-ft. containers and 30 tons for 40-ft. containers. In many countries containers of such sizes are transported on the roads using tractor and trailer units.
14.8 Although provision is made on the proposed Terminal layout for a large proportion of container packing to be carried out at the Terminal, it is anticipated that there would be demand for some to be carried out both at packing stations sited further afield and possibly at factories with big enough loads to fill one or more containers. The route to Hong Kong Island would be via the Cross Harbour Tunnel if it is built. Interest has been expressed in transporting containers by converted vehicle ferries to other packing stations to be sited near the waterfront on both the Island and Mainland; this might involve short journeys on public roads.
14.9
Under the Road Traffic (Construction and Use) Regulations the maximum permitted dimensions of vehicles are normally as shown in Table 10.
TABLE 10: MAXIMUM VEHICLE DIMENSIONS
Factor
Type of Vehicle
Length
Rigid
Length
Articulated
Length
Trailer
Width
All types
Height
Omnibuses
Height
Laden wt.
Other types
Omnibuses
:
:
:
:
Laden wt.
Other types
Amount
Regulation
30 ft.
33 ft.
8
15 ft.
32
8 ft.
9
15 ft.
35
101 ft.
10
14 tons
36
12 tons
92*
* There are also related regulations on axle loadings.
14.10 The Commissioner for Transport advises that the Construction and Use Regulations are out-of-date and changes are contemplated in order to bring them more into line with current vehicle-manufacturing standards. The changes envisaged though do not include any radical alterations to the maximum permitted dimensions of vehicles. However the present Regulations provide for the Commissioner for Transport to permit these maxima to be exceeded and a considerable number of such permits are in fact issued by him. For particularly heavy vehicles, the Commissioner seeks the advice of the P.W.D.
14.11 The present Regulations therefore preclude the unrestricted land transport of containers of the sizes envisaged, but the Commissioner for Transport has indicated that he would be prepared to consider permitting restricted transport from Kwai Chung. The restrictions would probably be on the routes and times that the vehicles could be used and would be subject to agreement by the various Government Departments concerned.
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