TNAG-0322-FCO40-358-Construction-of-underground-railway-system-in-Hong-Kong-1971 — Page 76

GOVERNMENT HOUSE

HONG KONG

CONFIDENTIAL

Mr Lauch

23

(14) in CR 10/5591/70.

Dear Xestie

30th April, 1971.

for commnasti please wit

LAST

REF.

(14)

NE

REF.

RECOVED IN

Thank you for your letter of 29th January on the proposed mass transit scheme for Hong Kong and for your offer of help and advice on the evaluation of the scheme. I am sorry it has taken so long to reply.

Our Transport Advisory Committee is indeed in favour of the scheme as necessary if Hong Kong's future transport requirements are to be adequately fulfilled"; but they were not asked to consider the financial aspects of the scheme.

11

Certainly opinion is divided, but this is only to be expected. The subway whether the whole of the so-called "preferred system (some 32.7 miles) or only the "initial system" (12.6 miles) world, as you say, be a most ambitious project, involving colossal expenditure over a period of years. It would certainly be far and away the biggest project we have ever undertaken, and requires the most careful consideration. We are at the moment looking in greater detail at the costs involved in the Consultants' proposals. The Consultants, in their estimates, did not include engineering fees, administration costs, or and this is the largest

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Sir Leslie Monson, KCMG, CB, REGISTRY No. 51 Foreign and Commonwealth Office,

11 MAY 1971 London, S.W. 1.

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