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Following is a question by the Hon Lau Kong-wah and a written reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Transport and Works, Dr Sarah Liao, in the Legislative Council meeting today (October 25) :
Question:
Regarding the operation of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) filling stations, will the Government inform this Council of:
(a) the average time currently taken by LPG taxis waiting at LPG filling stations for gas refills during rush hours, and how it compares to that in October last year; and
(b) the number of complaints received from taxi drivers in the past three months about prolonged waiting time for gas refill, and the follow-up actions taken?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) With large fluctuation in international LPG prices from September 2005 to February 2006 (i.e. prior to the monthly adjustment of LPG ceiling prices for dedicated LPG filling stations), LPG prices at non-dedicated LPG filling stations soared accordingly while those at dedicated LPG filling stations could not be changed until the half-yearly adjustment. As a result, there was a differential of $0.7/litre to $0.9/litre between the LPG prices at dedicated and non-dedicated LPG filling stations. During that time, about 74% of LPG vehicles were refilled at the 12 dedicated LPG filling stations while the remaining 26% of LPG vehicles were refilled at the 43 non-dedicated LPG filling stations. The mismatch between supply and demand led to long queues of vehicles waiting for gas refills at dedicated LPG filling stations.
In October last year, the queuing time for gas refills at dedicated LPG filling stations was about 5 to 20 minutes. The situation worsened in the following few months, with queuing time extended to 30 to 40 minutes during rush hours. Upon the implementation of monthly LPG ceiling price adjustment mechanism on 1 March 2006, the problem of LPG prices at dedicated LPG filling stations lagging behind those at non-dedicated stations was entirely resolved. Since then, the situation of vehicles queuing for gas refills has substantially improved. At present, the queuing of vehicles for gas refills at dedicated filling stations mainly occurs during the shift-changing hours of taxi drivers in the afternoon and the longest queuing time is only about 5 to 15 minutes.
(b) In the past three months, the Government received a total of two complaints about the slightly longer queuing time at dedicated filling stations. Site inspections conducted by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) revealed that the operators had tried their best to provide filling service by utilising all filling nozzles.
The EMSD has been closely monitoring the operation of dedicated filling stations. A 24-hour hotline has been set up to collect views of LPG vehicle trades. In addition, quarterly forums for dedicated filling station operators and the trades are arranged to enhance their communication and understanding, as well as gather views on the operation of filling stations.
Ends/Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Issued at HKT 11:59
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