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Following is a question by the Hon Daniel Lam and a reply by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Dr Patrick Ho, in the Legislative Council today (December 20):
Question:
It has been reported that on November 13 this year, a boy, while cycling on a narrow village road in Fu Tei Pai Tsuen of North District, came across a heavy garbage truck of a cleansing contractor of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department. When the boy stopped beside the truck to give way to it, he lost balance on the sloping ground and fell with his bicycle. He was then run over by the truck and died at the scene. Regarding village road safety, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the respective numbers of villages in the New Territories ("NT") already provided with standard rural vehicular access by the Government and those not yet provided with such access, as well as the reasons for the Government's non-provision of such access to the villages concerned;
(b) of the number of applications to the Government for the provision of standard rural vehicular access in each of the past five years, the decisions made by the authorities on such applications and the justifications for the decisions, the estimated and actual expenditure on the provision of rural vehicular access in each year of the same period, as well as the latest progress of the approved projects; and
(c) given the increase in traffic flow in NT in recent years with heavy vehicles travelling in and out of rural areas more frequently, whether the Government has studied measures to improve narrow village roads and enhance road safety in rural areas, with a view to avoiding traffic accidents; if so, of the details of the study; if not, the reasons for that, and whether it will carry out such study in the future?
Reply:
Madam President,
(a) According to the Village Representative Election Ordinance (Cap. 576), there are 707 villages in the New Territories. Government records show that, about 90 villages are provided with standard rural vehicular access. These vehicular access roads were constructed by relevant government departments broadly in accordance with the Transport Planning and Design Manual of the Transport Department. Most of the remaining villages are provided with vehicular access which can basically meet the daily traffic needs in rural areas. Enhancement of these vehicular access roads up to the standard in accordance with the Transport Planning and Design Manual normally requires widening of roads. The implementation of these works usually involves private land, demolition of existing structures or handling of objections. Therefore, improvement of rural roads to the above standard is restricted by objective site constraints.
(b) In each of the past five years, the Home Affairs Department (HAD) received about 50 proposals to improve rural roads. These proposals mainly involved resurfacing of dilapidated village roads, improvement to drainage systems, provision of carparks/ passing bays, etc. After it has received proposals to improve vehicular access, the HAD will meet the needs of the villagers as far as possible having regard to site conditions and will partially widen existing vehicular access where possible. Generally speaking, district offices will first assess the technical feasibility of the works concerned, including topographic and existing site constraints before submitting the proposals to district working groups for consideration and setting priorities, having regard to such factors as local needs, the number of people to be benefited, urgency, the scope of the projects and the costs to be incurred. The proposals will eventually be submitted to the Steering Committee of the Rural Public Works (RPW) Programme for consideration and inclusion in the RPW Programme for implementation.
In the past five years, the HAD carried out nearly 180 projects of improvement works relating to vehicular access in rural areas in the New Territories under the RPW Programme and the actual expenditure was $191 million. Regarding the progress of the approved projects, there are 22 projects concerning improvement to vehicular access under the RPW Programme in 2006/07 and the estimated total cost of the projects is about $18 million. Five of these projects either have been completed or are in progress while the remainder are in the planning stage.
(c) In the area of planning, the Planning Department will plan for suitable rural supporting facilities, including village access roads, when formulating area layout plans in order to tie in with the development of individual rural areas. Regarding the existing roads, various district offices have maintained communication with their respective District Councils and the local community on the needs and views of local residents and the use, maintenance and safety of individual roads. If necessary, the HAB and the TD will, in consultation with the local community, give consideration to implementing appropriate measures in individual road sections, including partial widening and resurfacing, installation of additional railings or other improvements and introduction of traffic management measures to improve road conditions and safety.
Ends/Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Issued at HKT 13:25
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