TNAG-0853-FCO40-1063-Transport-policy-in-Hong-Kong-1979 — Page 11

Publicity

35

Publicity will emphasise that the original subsidy given to the bus companies was itself anomalous, and only given in 1971 because short term difficulties made it difficult for the bus companies to maintain half-rate fares. It is now considered, however, that this assistance is no longer justified, and it has been decided to put these companies back onto the same basis as the other transport companies.

36

Because of the very strong public reaction expected, it may be of assistance to Members to set out the essential principles behind the recommendation, because disagreement with any of these principles would tend towards a different course of action. The recommendations stand or fall on the following:

37

(a)

(b)

(c)

That students travel should be at half-rate; i. e. that the education of children to a certain age should be subsidised by half rate travel on basic public transport modes; this is not a transport issue, but it should be noted that the universal application to both rich and poor alike of the subsidy has previously been criticised.

That it is highly desirable that all mass transit operations should be treated in the same way; i. e. that all transport operators should be subsidised or none at all this is a transport issue.

J

That the subsidy should be from the travelling public rather than the taxpayer - this is partly

a political and partly a financial issue.

If 36(a) is not accepted, the appropriate course is to do away with all student fares, unless an operator actually wishes to maintain them for commercial reasons. This would require further time to introduce, and it would have to be accepted that in the case of those operators who chose to maintain half fares, that these were being subsidised at least partly by the other travellers on that service. Clearly the public reaction would be even more unfavourable.

38

If 36(a) is accepted, but 36(b) is not, then the present scheme would be continued, and it would have to be accepted that there would be a continued financial commitment on Government and that there would be strong pressure from the ferry companies and MTRC to receive the same form of treatment as is now afforded to the bus companies,

CONFIDENTIAL