ENG-2005 — Page 308

262 | Transport

the AsiaWorld-Expo in December, carries a daily average of 24 000 passengers. The railway network currently operated by MTRCL is 91.5 kilometres in length.

Tramway

Electric trams have been operating on Hong Kong Island since 1904. The Hong Kong Tramways Limited operates six routes on 13 kilometres of double track along the northern shore of Hong Kong Island between Kennedy Town and Shau Kei Wan, and about three kilometers of single track around Happy Valley.

The company's 164 trams, including two open-balcony trams for tourists and private hire and one special maintenance tram, make up the world's largest fleet of double-deck trams in operation. The tramway has a daily average of 231 000 passenger trips. Fares are $2 for adults and $1 for children aged under 12 and senior citizens aged 65 or above.

Peak Tram

Hong Kong's other tramway is a cable-hauled funicular railway operated by the Peak Tramways Company Limited from Central (Garden Road) to the Peak. The 1.4-kilometre tramway began operation in 1888 and was modernised in 1989. The Peak Tram has an average of 11 000 passenger trips a day, mostly consisting of tourists and local sightseers. One-way fares for adults, children aged under 12 and senior citizens aged 65 or above are $20, $6 and $7 respectively.

Other Road-based Passenger Transport

The other road-based passenger transport modes mainly franchised buses, public light buses, taxis and residents' services account for 64 per cent of all public

transport journeys.

Franchised Buses

Franchised buses are the largest road-based carriers and account for about 35 per cent of the total daily public transport volume. Local bus services in Kowloon and the New Territories are largely provided by the Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited (KMB). At year-end, the company operated 384 bus routes in Kowloon and the New Territories; 23 and 29 cross-harbour routes jointly with Citybus Limited (CTB) and New World First Bus Services Limited (NWFB) respectively; and 11 cross-harbour routes on its own.

The KMB fleet comprised 4 021 licensed vehicles at year-end; 3 642 were air-conditioned and 1 698 wheelchair-accessible. KMB recorded 1.01 billion passenger trips (a daily average of 2.77 million passenger trips) and covered 339 million kilometres during the year. Its fares ranged from $1.60 to $38 for regular routes. Children aged under 12 and elderly passengers were offered concessionary fares on all the company's routes.

Local bus services on Hong Kong Island are provided by NWFB and CTB. At year-end, NWFB was operating 54 bus routes on Hong Kong Island, eight in Kowloon and Tseung Kwan O and 33 cross-harbour routes, 29 of which were operated jointly