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Following is a question by the Hon Bernard Chan and a written reply by the Secretary for Economic Services, Mr Stephen Ip, in the Legislative Council today (Wednesday) :

Question:

At present, private car drivers picking up passengers in the airport at Chek Lap Kok can park their cars only at the fee-charging car parks, which offer no grace period for short stay. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council if it knows:

(a) whether the Airport Authority had surveyed the practices in other major international airports before it made the decision of not providing a free pick-up area; if so, the results of the survey;

(b) whether the Airport Authority has plans to designate such a pick-up area for private cars; if not, the reasons for that; and

(c) given the long walking distance from the arrival hall to the car park, whether the Airport Authority will consider providing more convenient picking up arrangements for arriving business leaders?

Reply:

Madam President,

We have consulted the Airport Authority (AA). The information provided by the AA in response to the three parts of the question is as follows-

(a) The airport's design consultant had taken into consideration the practices at other major international airports in the general design of the Passenger Terminal Building (PTB). However, the AA does not have information on whether the pick-up arrangements at other airports had been specifically deliberated at the design stage. In considering the pick-up arrangement at the new airport, the AA also has to take into account the operational needs. No passenger pick-up, free or otherwise, can be provided on the road down the arrivals level (Cheong Tat Road) as it is primarily for Emergency Vehicle Access and dispersal from fire exits at the lower levels of the PTB.

(b) There are designated pick-up areas for private cars at the open car park to the south of the PTB and the multi-storey car park to the north. Vehicles using the car parks are charged at $13 (in the case of open car park) or $16 (in the case of multi-storey car park) an hour. The AA has examined the possibility of designating areas close to the PTB as free pick-up areas or offering a grace period for short stay at the car parks. However, based on experience at Kai Tak and actual operational experience at the new airport, there is a real risk of clogging up the traffic in the surrounding areas if such arrangements are introduced. While waiting for their passengers, drivers would tend to drive in and out of the pick-up areas or car parks when the grace period is expired, thus causing traffic congestion in the nearby road system. Immense resources would be required to maintain order with no guarantee of smooth operation. Such arrangements would also encourage touting activities.

(c) The AA has estimated that the walking distance between the meeters and greeters areas in the PTB and the pick-up areas in the public car parks is on average five to six minutes, which would normally not be considered as excessively long. The AA attaches great importance to the convenience of passengers. However, given the physical constraints, there is little scope for making significant changes to the present arrangement.

End/Wednesday, March 24, 1999

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