ENG-1959 — Page 306

COMMUNICATIONS

255

Private Cars (including 14 on Lantau Island) Motor Cycles (including motor scooters and motor- assisted pedal cycles and one on Lantau Island)

26,884

2,888

Taxis

Buses

851

775

Goods Vehicles (including four on Lantau Island)

7,007

Crown Vehicles

1,215

Rickshaws ...

866

Tricycles

812

41,298

MULTI-STOREY CAR PARKS

Hong Kong now has two multi-storey car parks, situated in the centre of Victoria and operated by the Urban Services Department on behalf of the Urban Council. Both are of three storeys, the top storey being roofless, and together they accommodate 574 cars. The ordinary charge for parking is 50c. for 24 hours but special cheap rates apply in the evenings and at week-ends, whilst monthly passes are available at $40 per month. On the average 12,800 cars are parked in them each month, and an average of 336 monthly passes are issued.

The commencement of piling work on the site of the City Hall, has drastically reduced the free parking space nearby, and the car parks are now full for short periods each week-day.

CIVIL AVIATION

The year 1959 saw the completion of the second stage of the approved Airport Development Plan, which was originally evolved in 1953. The first stage, completed by September 1958, was the provision of a promontory, reclaimed entirely from the waters of Kowloon Bay, some 7,800 feet long and 800 feet wide, which contained a single runway, a parallel taxiway and associated taxiway links. In addition, a temporary Control Tower was built to ensure the efficient operation of air traffic movements on the new runway, and a modern Airport Fire Station was also brought into use. The second stage entailed the extension of the runway at the landward end by 680 feet, the provision of a new aircraft