ENG-2016 — Page 258

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Transport

the harbour to Admiralty Station on Hong Kong Island. Construction started in 2012. Upon commissioning, the Shatin to Central Link will handle about 1.1 million passenger trips per day and save about an average of 75 million hours in travelling time per year. It will provide a railway service for districts including Hin Keng, Kai Tak, To Kwa Wan and Ma Tau Wai, which are currently not served by the railway network, and increase the capacity of the railway section from Sha Tin to Hung Hom and across the harbour, helping to relieve the burden on the rail lines in urban Kowloon and on Hong Kong Island.

The Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link is a 26km underground railway with its terminus at West Kowloon. Construction started in 2010. Trains will be able to run through the tunnel at up to 200kmh, reducing the train journey between Hong Kong and Guangzhou from 100 minutes to 48 minutes. The journey time to other major Mainland cities will also be greatly shortened.

Future Railway Development

The government's Railway Development Strategy 2014 provides a framework for planning the expansion of the railway network up to 2031. It recommends that seven railway projects be completed up to 2031, having regard to transport demand, cost-effectiveness and the development needs of New Development Areas. These seven projects are the Northern Link and Kwu Tung Station, Tuen Mun South Extension, East Kowloon Line, Tung Chung West Extension, Hung Shui Kiu Station, South Island Line (West) and North Island Line. They are being taken forward in stages.

Tramway

Electric trams have been running on Hong Kong Island since 1904. Hong Kong Tramways runs seven routes on 13km of double tracks along the northern shore of Hong Kong Island between Kennedy Town and Shau Kei Wan, and about 3km of single track around Happy Valley.

The company's 167 trams, including one sightseeing tram, one air-conditioned tram, two open- balcony trams for tourists and private hire and three special maintenance trams, make up the world's largest fleet of double-deck trams in operation. The tramway recorded a daily average of about 176,900 passenger trips in 2016.

Road Transport

Road Network

The territory has 2,107km of roads, 1,351 road structures, 16 road tunnels including three immersed-tube cross-harbour tunnels, and five major cable-supported bridges.

Tunnels

The 'Build-Operate-Transfer' (BOT) franchise of the Eastern Harbour Crossing expired in August. The government now owns 12 road tunnels, all managed and operated by private companies under management contracts: the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, Eastern Harbour Crossing, Lion Rock, Aberdeen, Kai Tak, Shing Mun, Tseung Kwan O, Cheung Tsing, Tai Wai, Sha Tin Heights, Eagle's Nest and Nam Wan tunnels. The last four are located in the Tsing Sha Control Area, while Cheung Tsing Tunnel is located in the Tsing Ma Control Area. Use of the Cheung Tsing, Kai Tak

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