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Following is a question by the Dr the Hon Joseph Lee and a written reply by the Secretary for Housing, Planning and Lands, Mr Michael Suen, in the Legislative Council today (November 9):
Question:
It has been reported that the Housing Authority ("HA") has so far not provided lifts or escalators for access to some or all floor levels in the housing blocks of its old public housing estates aged under 40 years, nor has it inspected the facilities in those housing estates and reviewed the need for alteration or addition works to facilitate the mobility of the elderly and disabled residents in such housing blocks. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the names of the public housing estates in which no lifts have been installed for access to some or all floor levels in the housing blocks, the number of floor levels concerned, the districts where such housing estates are situated and the years of completion of those housing blocks; the number of public housing estates in which ramps or stepways have been provided, the length of the ramps and the number of stepways concerned; as well as the number of escalators available;
(b) of the respective numbers of elderly persons and people having mobility problem (such as disabled persons, mentally retarded persons and chronic patients) living in the above housing estates; and
(c) why lifts and escalators have so far not been provided in those housing estates; and whether there are plans to install such facilities to meet the needs of the residents?
Reply:
Madam President,
My reply to the three-part question is as follows:
(a) At present, a total of 32 housing blocks in 11 aged public housing estates are not provided with lifts. The names of the housing estates, the numbers of storeys concerned, the districts where they are situated and the years of completion of the housing blocks are detailed at Annex.
Many public housing estates are built on hillside with some blocks situated on slopes. As a result, some of the access roads are sloping. The Housing Authority takes into account the topography and physical environment in designing appropriate access roads, stairs, lifts or escalators to facilitate the movement of residents to and from the buildings within the estate. In large housing estates, public transport linking different places in the estate is also available to facilitate residents to move about. The Housing Department has not kept systematic records of ramps and stairs for each housing estate. Hence, detailed counts of the numbers and length of ramps and the numbers of staircases and the steps involved are not readily available.
(b) The numbers of elderly persons and disabled persons now living in public housing blocks without lifts are at Annex. In view of the special needs of elderly and disabled residents, the Housing Department has all along been keeping close contacts with them so that timely and appropriate assistance can be provided as necessary. If non-provision of lifts causes inconvenience to their daily life, they are welcome to request transfer. The Housing Department will take prompt actions to follow up such applications.
(c) Retrofitting lifts in completed public housing blocks involves complex engineering works, the major considerations being loading capacity of the building structure, availability of suitable space for the installation and the effect on underground public utilities. The Housing Authority will examine the technical feasibility of retrofitting lifts in these aged buildings during implementation of the ¡§Total Maintenance Scheme¡¨ and the comprehensive structural investigation on housing estates aged 40 years and above. Subject to structural safety and technical feasibility, necessary works will be carried out through the Estate Improvement Programme as soon as practicable.
Ends/Wednesday, November 9, 2005
Issued at HKT 12:29
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