ENG-1990 — Page 281

TRANSPORT

users, and managing travel demand to a level with which the road system can cope. A package of measures proposed for managing road use include traffic management and engineering schemes and minimising traffic disruptions caused by road opening works, traffic accidents and defective vehicles. In the longer term, the development of technology for traffic management measures such as area pricing is being watched.

Administration

The Transport Branch of the Government Secretariat, headed by the Secretary for Transport, is responsible for overall policy formulation, direction and co-ordination of all transport matters. The secretary is assisted by the Transport Advisory Committee, which advises the Governor in Council on major transport policies and issues. The committee has 17 appointed members, including the chairman and six government officials. The Transport Policy Co-ordinating Committee is chaired by the Secretary for Transport.

The Transport Department and the Highways Department are responsible for the execution of transport policies and measures, and the highways construction and main- tenance programme.

The Commissioner for Transport, the head of the Transport Department, is the authority for administering the Road Traffic Ordinance and legislation regulating public transport operations other than railways. His responsibilities cover road traffic manage- ment, including government road tunnels, carparks and metered parking spaces, and the regulation of internal road and waterborne public transport. On these matters, he is advised by the Standing Conference on Road Use and the Standing Committee on Waterborne Transport. He is also the authority for the licensing of drivers and the registration, licensing and inspection of vehicles.

The Police Force is the principal agency for enforcing traffic legislation and prosecuting offenders. However, the prosecution unit of the Transport Department handles prosecu- tions involving safety defects found on buses, disqualifications under the Driving Offence Points System and breaches of vehicle safety regulations and government tunnel reg- ulations. In 1990, the unit conducted two prosecutions in respect of buses and other vehicles, 3 280 cases for which disqualification was sought under the Driving Offence Points System and 124 prosecutions in respect of breach of tunnel and other regulations.

The Director of Highways heads the Highways Department, which is responsible for designing and building all highways, and for their repair and maintenance. The department is also responsible for studying new railway networks.

A Transport Tribunal, set up under the Road Traffic Ordinance and chaired by an unofficial member, provides the public with a channel of appeal against decisions made by the Commissioner for Transport in respect of registration and licensing of vehicles and issue of hire car permits and passenger service licences.

Planning

The formulation of a territory-wide transport strategy up to the year 2011 is being undertaken by updating the Second Comprehensive Transport Study. Detailed transport planning is also carried out at territorial and district levels to resolve transport and traffic problems. In the past year, the West Kowloon Reclamation Transport Study, and a number of studies to investigate the future transport infrastructure requirements in Tseung Kwan O (Junk Bay), Tuen Mun and Tin Shui Wai New Towns were completed. District

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