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Following is a question by the Hon Sin Chung-kai, and a written reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose S K Lee, in the Legislative Council today (June 8):
Question:
Regarding the vehicle location technology (VLT) adopted for the Third Generation Communication and Mobilising System in the Fire Services Communication Centre, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) whether it has studied the feasibility of adopting similar location technology for the vehicle fleets of other government departments, so as to improve the efficiency of vehicle deployment; if it has, of the details of the study, the expenditure involved in the introduction of such technology, and whether it will transfer the technology adopted by the Fire Services Department (FSD) to save development costs; if not, the reasons for that;
(b) whether it will open the associated infrastructure and technology of VLT to the private sector to promote the use of VLT in Hong Kong; if it will, of the relevant details and timetable; if not, the reasons for that; and
(c) of the interoperability between the said system of FSD and the Vehicle Location System of the Third Generation Command and Control Communications System currently used by the Hong Kong Police Force; whether any mechanism is in place to coordinate the deployment of relevant resources between the two departments for joint rescue operations?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) The Government has conducted a survey on a number of departments (Note 1) which can potentially benefit from adopting vehicle location technology (VLT) similar to the VLT used for the Third Generation Mobilising System (TGMS) of the Fire Services Department (FSD). Among them, the Civil Aid Service has implemented a Vehicle Tracking System (VTS) and installed VTS equipment in 17 of its vehicles to ensure the safety of its staff during operations and to enable more flexible allocation of resources. The cost of the system is about $0.6 million.
As mentioned in the Honourable Member's question, the Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) will also employ VLT for its Third Generation Command and Control Communications System (CCIII). Under the CCIII, there are a number of sub-systems, including the Automatic Vehicle Location System and Geographic Information System (AVLS & GIS), which use Global Positioning System (GPS) to track the location of police emergency response vehicles and facilitate the dispatch of nearby patrol units to the scene of incidents. A total of 500 police vehicles will be installed with AVLS and GIS systems. The cost of these systems is about $37.5 million.
As to the transferability of the VLT adopted for the TGMS to other departments, this will very much depend on the specific operation/business process and interface requirements of the departments concerned. These issues will need to be considered in the context of the relevant procurement exercise. While the VLT adopted for the TGMS may not be readily transportable to other departments, the knowledge and experience gained in implementing the TGMS can be shared among departments.
(b) We are unable to give a definitive answer to this question at this stage, as it would require further detailed study and consultations among the departments and other parties concerned.
In considering the feasibility of opening the associated infrastructure and technology of VLT to the private sector, we need to look into a number of issues carefully, including whether this will affect the security, integrity and reliability of the TGMS, which was designed primarily for mobilizing resources for fire-fighting and emergency rescue/life-saving operations, and the intellectual property rights of the system contractor. There are other technical issues that need to be considered as the TGMS, including its vehicle location system, and the supporting infrastructure were designed to cope with the future need of FSD only and there may not be spare capacity for other users.
(c) There is potential for interoperation between the vehicle location systems of the CCIII and TGMS as they both adopted the same VLT standard. However, given the difference in the scope of duties and mobilization needs of FSD and HKPF, at present there is no apparent need for such interoperation.
As regards the coordination of resources deployment for joint rescue operations, there are direct telephone lines linking the Fire Services Communication Centre with the Regional Command and Control Centres of HKPF for the swift exchange of information and messages between the two departments. If circumstances warrant, an on-site Joint Command and Control Centre will be set up to coordinate the rescue efforts of all units at the scene.
Note 1: The departments include Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Civil Aid Service, Customs and Excise Department, Drainage Services Department, Environmental Protection Department, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, Government Logistics Department, Hong Kong Post, Immigration Department, Leisure and Cultural Services Department and Water Supplies Department.
Ends/Wednesday, June 8, 2005
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