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Following is a speech (English only) by the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mrs Anson Chan, at the Opening Ceremony of the International Union of Public Transport Asia/Pacific Congress and Exhibition today (Wednesday):
Mr Chairman, ladies and gentlemen,
I am delighted this morning to have the opportunity today to address the Asia/Pacific Congress organised by the International Union of Public Transport. I would like to extend a very warm welcome to you all, particularly to those delegates who have come from overseas.
Some historians hold the view that the Roman Empire was founded not on its military strength, but on its superior network of quality roads, some of which are still in use in Europe today. If this is true of Ancient Rome, then it is even more true of today's cities which must rely on efficient public transport systems to move their people and goods about.
Little wonder that public transport is a priority issue for all governments.
Whilst no single city or country is built on quite the same terrain and uses quite the same modes of transport, public transport authorities all face the same question, "What is the best way of providing a transport network that hopefully will satisfy all customers and commuters." I think we can all learn from each other's experiences. The International Union of Public Transport provides a forum for fruitful exchanges of views and sharing of experiences, hopefully resulting in better solutions to common problems. This morning, I should like to share with you the Hong Kong experience - not so much about the plans or projects themselves, but more about the principles and philosophy behind them.
Hong Kong was once described by Lord Palmerston in the 1840s as a "barren rock" which would never be a "mart of trade". More than 50 per cent of our land was covered by woods or hills with pockets of usable flat land here and there. Our only natural resource was a deep sea port.
Yet we have overcome this physical constraint. The Hong Kong of today is a buzzling metropolis, home to six and a half million people with the busiest container port in the world. Many of you probably landed a few days ago at our brand new international airport. You have either enjoyed the first class service provided by the Airport Railway; or have been driven past the Tung Chung new town, North Lantau Expressway, Tsing Ma Bridge (which is the world's longest combined road and rail suspension bridge), Route 3, West Kowloon Expressway and the Western Harbour Crossing to reach your hotels in the central business district.
What you have experienced is a breath-taking journey through our Airport Core Programme, which costs a total of US$20 billion. The Programme is our latest and most ambitious infrastructural project bringing together our six and a half million people and linking us with the rest of the world.
Hong Kong never ceases to plan and build for our future. Despite the compact nature of Hong Kong, our road networks cover a total length of over 1,800 kilometres, which is about the distance between Frankfurt and Moscow, or between Boston and Houston. The railway network extends to about 143 kilometres. To keep pace with our projected population growth and economic development, we have embarked on an even more ambitious infrastructure strategy in which railways will form the backbone of our transport network, linking up what we call "strategic growth areas" with the business districts and serving major corridors with the heaviest traffic flow. To achieve this, we are embarking on an ambitious plan of completing another 60 kilometres of railway costing US$14 billion. By the year 2004, our new towns such as Tseung Kwan O, Ma On Shan, Yuen Long will all have a rail connection.
In addition, another US$2 billion has been earmarked for our Public Works Programme in the next five years for our new highway projects, including the construction of new trunk roads as well as improvements to existing ones to add capacity and relieve congestion. Planning further ahead, we are undertaking feasibility studies and preliminary designs of new road projects which are worth more than US$6 billion. These projects together will provide an outer ring road along the western side of Hong Kong Island linking to the West New Territories and providing road connections through mountains or indeed underneath urban development.
One key element in our long term strategic transport planning is to look beyond the boundary of Hong Kong. With our economy becoming increasingly integrated with the Mainland, the daily number of cross boundary vehicles has reached a level of about 28,000 and is still growing at a rate of six per cent per year; and the average daily passenger flow stands at some 200,000 people, which amounts to three per cent of our population. To meet projected increase in the cross boundary flow of people and goods, we have decided to build a spur line leading to a second rail passenger boundary crossing. We are also discussing with the relevant Mainland authorities the possibility of opening new boundary road crossings to Shenzhen and Zhuhai. Both links are under active study.
Building such a mammoth public transport network is a significant drain on our financial resources. We are fortunate that years of sustained economic growth and prudent fiscal management have given us the financial capacity to continue to invest in our transport infrastructure. We do not allow the growth in public expenditure to exceed our economic growth. Our policy is not to subsidize directly any public transport operation. Both the two wholly Government owned rail corporations, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation, host of this Congress, and the Kowloon Canton Railway Corporation, operate on sound commercial principles. Together they returned a profit of US$770 million last year.
We are able to provide public transport services with minimum burden on taxpayers by keeping the government small. We encourage our private sector to participate to the maximum extent possible. We believe in the invisible hands of market forces. We believe also that the private sector is usually more efficient and flexible in service provision. An excellent example of this is our "Build, Operate and Transfer" approach which we used in constructing our tunnels. Under this BOT scheme, a company awarded the franchise will construct and then operate the tunnel for a specified time, usually 30 years, before the tunnel is transferred to government ownership. This approach allows us to utilize the resources and expertise of the private sector. It also saves the taxpayers' money and allows the costs of construction to be recovered by tolls charged on road-users under a "user pays" principle.
Hong Kong provides the right environment for the private sector to flourish. We are first and foremost a pro-competition government. Competition encourages better services and provides the widest range of choice to customers at affordable prices. We are committed to opening up our markets. The bus services on the Hong Kong Island, for example, used to be a monopolistic market. Competition was introduced in recent years, and less than two months ago, a new bus operator - New World First Bus Services Limited - took over from the old franchisee and became one of the two operators. Needless to say, the company was awarded the franchise only after a competitive tendering process in which it beat five other bidders in terms of level and quality of services, pricing and corporate capability. Likewise, we are now in the process of inviting tenders for ferry services. We have no hesitation in giving opportunities to new entrants to compete. At the end of the day what really counts is performance.
Our pro-competition policy has resulted in a great diversity of operators. Underground, rail, light rail, trams, peak trams, ferries, buses, cross boundary coaches, mini-buses and taxis offer the public a good range of choice at different level of comfort, speed, convenience and price. The two government owned railway corporations, cannot avoid competition from other operators. And you will be surprised to find trams running similar routes in our busiest business districts as the underground train beneath the surface.
Closely allied to our pro-competition stance is the Government's determination to maintain a level playing field, that is ensuring equal access to markets for all. Hong Kong is an international city. We welcome foreign participation in major public transport projects whether they be consultants, planners, contractors, investors, operators, franchisees and suppliers just as much as we welcome foreign investment in other sectors of our economy. Take our Airport Core Programme as an example. In value terms, contractors from 17 different countries shared about 70% of all the contracts awarded. The Tsing Ma Bridge I just mentioned, for instance, went to an Anglo-Japanese joint venture, whereas the rolling stock of the Airport Railway comes from a German-Spanish joint venture.
The Hong Kong Government sees itself as the chief architect who lays down the long term blueprint, as the umpire who maintains a level playing field and the rule of law, and as the regulator who ensures standards of service and fair play. We are strong proponents of the free market economy with minimum Government intervention. It is our belief that this is the best way to tap the resources and talent of the people, whose energy, imagination and diligence have turned this once barren island into the "Manhattan of the East with mountains".
Mr Bailly has just referred in his opening address to some of the challenges that transport planners all over the world will face as we move into the twenty-first century. I wish you all a very stimulating and productive session discussing how you will meet these challenges. I also wish you a most enjoyable stay here in Hong Kong.
Thank you.
End/Wednesday, October 21, 1998
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