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Following is the transcript of remarks by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, on the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link project after attending the Legislative Council meeting today (May 4):
Reporter: ... Is there any overestimating in the first place about the efficiency of this project?
Secretary for Transport and Housing: Not at all. I would not agree with the comment that we are overestimating the efficiency of the Express Rail project. Because what I said earlier in Cantonese was what was the basis for the overall planning of the Express Rail project back in 2009. And, based on the planned figures, out of the total number of short-haul trips between Hong Kong and Shenzhen and Guangzhou, 54 per cent were expected to be direct trains, meaning there will be no interim stops on the journey. So, purely on the basis of direct trains, we have 54 per cent, and then, out of those 54 per cent, on a daily basis, there will be 11 (pairs of) direct train trips between Hong Kong and Guangzhou South. Of course, there are other trips as well, some with interim stops. So, overall speaking, the planned, I have to emphasise it was planned at that time that the mix of various trips will be able to meet with initial demand. But, that, of course, was the planning parameters or assumptions adopted at the time. We are talking about six or seven years ago. Of course, now that we are expecting the Express Rail to be commissioned in 2018, nearer the time the Hong Kong side as well as the Mainland side will have to come to more concrete decisions regarding the planning of the trips.
(Please also refer to the Chinese portion of the transcript.)
Ends/Wednesday, May 4, 2016
Issued at HKT 17:58
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