ENG-1985 — Page 223

TRANSPORT

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network of strategic roads is now growing rapidly throughout the territory and provides a better class of arterial roads than has been seen before in Hong Kong.

These roads are all dual carriageway facilities with a minimum of two and often three lanes in each direction. The network will connect all the major urban centres and each of the new towns in the New Territories. These roads generally replace or duplicate congested general purpose roads in both the rural and urban areas.

The spine of the system is provided by Route 1 which will connect Aberdeen to Sheung Shui and includes the three tunnels: the Aberdeen Tunnel, the Cross-Harbour Tunnel and the Lion Rock Tunnel. Other strategic routes within the urban areas are provided along the north shore of Hong Kong Island, including the Island Eastern Corridor (Route 8), two routes which follow both the west and east coasts of the Kowloon peninsula, Routes 2 and 3, and Route 4 which runs along the base of the foothills which separate Kowloon from the New Territories.

The strategic road system in the New Territories connects each of the new towns. The major link in the western New Territories is Route 2. It includes the Tsuen Wan Bypass and its connections into Kowloon, and the Tuen Mun Highway which connects Tsuen Wan with Tuen Mun. Travelling north from Tuen Mun there is an existing dual carriageway route through to Yuen Long which forms the starting point for a new improved road which is being provided along the old alignment of the Castle Peak Road so as to provide a high quality connection through to Fanling. A new road link with China, at Lok Ma Chau, will connect directly with this improved road in 1987. The current strategic system in the New Territories is completed by the recently opened road link between Fanling and Sha Tin which forms part of Route 1.

Future additions to the Strategic Road Network are planned. A new tunnel link, Route 5, will be constructed between Tsuen Wan and Sha Tin. Furthermore, a third tunnel from Sha Tin is being planned so as to provide a much needed additional access route from the northeast New Territories into Kowloon. This new tunnel will connect directly to the planned Eastern Harbour Crossing. Finally, on Hong Kong Island, the Island Eastern Corridor is to be extended through to Chai Wan.

Over the last 10 years, the government has spent a total of approximately $10,000 million on new roads in addition to that which has been spent on major public transport projects such as the Mass Transit Railway. Current expenditure amounts to approximately $2,000 million per year. This budget is at present split almost equally between the urban areas and the New Territories.

Major Road Projects

The construction of the Island Eastern Corridor has transformed the traffic flow along the northeastern shore of Hong Kong Island, where the older routes had become heavily congested. The first section from Causeway Bay to Tai Koo Shing was opened in 1984 and the opening of the second section, eastwards to Shau Kei Wan, brought the completed length to 5.5 kilometres. Some parts of the third section, from Shau Kei Wan to Chai Wan, have already been built. When completed in 1989, the corridor will total nine kilometres.

The corridor project has involved considerable reclamation, reprovisioning of ferry piers, and the construction of long piles and large concrete columns to support the elevated sections of the carriageway over the sea. About $1,400 million had been spent on the project by the end of 1985.

In Kowloon, several projects were under construction and, in particular, a flyover carrying Waterloo Road over Cornwall Street and Junction Road was completed. Great