ENG-1975 — Page 197

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COMMUNICATIONS AND TRANSPORT

under the Road Traffic Ordinance or legislation relating to the public transport companies.

During the year, road traffic regulations were amended to allow goods vehicles exceeding two tons and omnibuses to travel up to 40 mph. The old speed limit of 30 mph for these vehicles dated back to 1912. Towards the end of 1975, amending legislation was being considered to provide more effective control against overcrowd- ing in public service vehicles, to ensure greater safety for passengers. To combat diesel fumes pollution, a month-long campaign was launched in September by the govern- ment and the Advisory Committee on Environmental Pollution. The campaign featured leaflets, posters and films aimed at making owners and drivers aware of the nuisance and health hazards of diesel fume pollution and the need for proper main- tenance of their vehicles.

Licensing

The number of registered vehicles dropped by 5,421 during the year, the figure standing at 188,018 on December 31. Vehicle statistics are given in Appendix 36. Driving licences remained in steady demand with the number at the end of the year reaching 498,274, compared with 474,531 the previous year. Towards the end of 1975, preparations were well under way for a computer system to handle registration and licensing of vehicles and drivers over the counter, replacing the manual opera- tion. This will enable motorists to have their licence documents processed within minutes on the spot. The system is the second phase of what is known as the VALID (Vehicle And Licensing Data) System which is designed to speed up services to motorists. It is also related to a system of fixed penalties for certain driving offences, to be introduced in 1976.

Courses remained popular at the Indoor Driving Instruction Centre which opened in June 1974 to improve the general standard of driving. Basic driving techniques are taught with the aid of 16 driving simulators, films, and a computer controlled panel in preparation for instruction on the road. By the end of December, 5,110 people had attended such courses.

Postal Services

An estimated 273 million letters, registered articles and parcels were handled during the year-some 4.5 per cent more than in 1974. Local mail accounted largely for the increase, but air mail also increased-air parcel traffic in particular showing a marked advance on the previous year. On average more than five tons of air mail was despatched from Hong Kong every day throughout 1975. Most surface mail despatched to other countries is now containerised. A full container load was made up every day of the year, on average, and more often than not this was a standard 40- foot container.

The speedpost service continued to expand, catering for the rapid and reliable transmission of business documents and commercial papers. It now operates to Britain, the United States, Brazil and Japan. The Post Office collects items from customers' premises on a contractual basis and immediately despatches them to the