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Following is a question by Hon Lee Wing-tat and a written reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Edward Yau, in the Legislative Council today (February 11):
Question:
It has been learnt that the MTR Corporation Limited decided in 2005 to retrofit noise barriers along the Tsing Yi section of the Airport Railway in order to address the noise problem caused by the enhancement of Airport Express services, and the project was scheduled for completion in June 2006. Yet, the project has still not been completed to date. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of complaints received by the Environmental Protection Department ("EPD") in the past three years about the noise generated by trains running along the said section; among such complaints, of the number of substantiated cases, and the follow-up actions taken by EPD and other authorities concerned;
(b) whether EPD had regularly monitored the noise level of the said section in the past three years; if it had, whether there were cases of the noise level exceeding the maximum statutory limit; if so, of the details;
(c) whether it knows the reasons for the above project not having been completed to date;
(d) whether it has assessed if the above noise barriers are effective in reducing the noise nuisance to the residents in the vicinity; if it has, of the result; and
(e) whether the Government will adopt other measures to reduce the noise nuisance of the said section caused to the residents in the vicinity; if it will, of the details?
Reply:
President,
(a) In the three years from 2006 to 2008, the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) received a total of nine complaints about noise generated by trains running along the Tsing Yi section of the Airport Railway (the Tsing Yi section). EPD staff conducted site investigation on each occasion and contacted the complainants to get a full picture of the noise nuisance. The complainants of two of the cases agreed EPD staff to take measurement at the flats concerned. The results showed that train noise did not exceed the statutory limit. The EPD has informed the MTR Corporation Ltd. (MTR) of the complaints.
(b) Noise generated by running trains is subject to the Noise Control Ordinance. The Technical Memoranda issued under the Ordinance set out the noise restrictions in detail, including noise limits for sensitive receivers. The EPD measures train noise at affected locations (including those along the Tsing Yi section) in response to complaints from the public instead of conducting regular inspections. In the past three years, no incident of noise level exceeding the statutory limit has been detected along the Tsing Yi section.
(c) To cater for passengers' needs upon the opening of the AsiaWorld-Expo Station in 2005, it was necessary for the MTR to enhance the Airport Express service. Although train noise did not exceed the statutory limit, the MTR decided to retrofit noise abatement devices along the Airport Express/Tung Chung Line on top of routine repair and maintenance measures to mitigate any potential impact of train noise on the neighbourhood. Works of the project included retrofitting noise barriers, noise enclosures or noise absorption panels as appropriate on the viaducts along the Tsing Yi section. The project commenced in early 2006 and, based on the scale of the project at that time, was expected to complete in 18 months.
Once the project was underway, the MTR decided to optimise the design of the project for better effects. As a result, the scale of works at some parts of the section was upgraded, with noise barriers along both sides of the viaducts substituted by covered noise enclosures of the fully enclosed type to enhance the noise abatement effect. The upgrade works are more or less finished, and the MTR expects to complete the entire project in the first half of 2009.
(d) After commencing the project, the MTR assessed its effectiveness and has subsequently optimised the design of the project and upgraded the scale of works along some parts of the section as mentioned in (c) to enhance the noise insulation effect.
(e) In addition to the project, the MTR implements a package of routine repair and maintenance measures to abate train noise. They include fitting trains with wheel dampers, polishing rails and wheels, applying lubricant to rails and wheels, etc. The Government will continue to monitor train noise along the Tsing Yi section in response to complaints from the public.
Ends/Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Issued at HKT 12:26
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