ENG-1995 — Page 275

TRANSPORT

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transport planning, road traffic management, government road tunnels, carparks and metered parking spaces, and the regulation of internal roads and waterborne public transport. The Commissioner for Transport is also the authority for the licensing of drivers and the registration, licensing and inspection of vehicles.

While the police force is the principal agency for enforcing traffic legislation and prosecuting offenders, the Prosecutions Unit of the Transport Department handles prosecutions involving safety defects found on buses, disqualifications under the Driving Offence Points System, and breaches of vehicle safety regulations and government tunnel regulations. In 1995, the unit handled 37 prosecutions in respect of buses, 4 590 cases for which disqualification was sought under the Driving Offence Points System, and 920 prosecutions in respect of breaches of tunnel and other regulations.

A Transport Tribunal, with chairman and members all appointed from the public and set up under the Road Traffic Ordinance, provides the public with a channel of appeal against decisions made by the Commissioner for Transport in respect of the registration and licensing of vehicles, the issue of hire car permits and passenger service licences, and designation of car-testing centres.

The Transport Department also operates an Emergency Transport Co-ordination Centre, which co-ordinates traffic and transport arrangements during serious traffic and transport disruptions, rainstorms and typhoons. The centre undertook 30 opera- tions in 1995.

To tackle the area-wide traffic congestion at the Kwai Chung container port, the police operate, when necessary, the Emergency Container Port Traffic Control Centre jointly with representatives of the Transport Department, Kwai Tsing District Office, the three terminal operators, the Container Tractor Owners Association and the Container Transportation Employee's General Union. The control centre is within the container port and is equipped with a closed-circuit television system and efficient communication links.

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

Planning

The Freight Transport Study, which was completed in 1994, has put forward recommendations to improve the efficiency and operation of the freight industry. A freight transport strategy is being drafted taking into consideration comments received during the public consultation on the study recommendations. It will be published in 1996.

Preparatory work was in hand during the year for the Third Comprehensive Transport Study to examine the territory's strategic transport requirements. It will commence in mid-1996.

A study to assess parking demand in Hong Kong was completed in 1995. It provided forecasts for future demand, identified shortfalls in parking spaces for the territory and made recommendations to tackle parking problems.

The Sha Tin-Ma On Shan District Traffic Study was also completed this year. It identified traffic problems in the district and recommended improvement measures.