LCQ13: Parking spaces in Central and Western District
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Question:
The Government has consulted the Central and Western District Council (C&WDC) twice on the plan to rezone the site of Murray Road Multi-storey Carpark (MRMCP) in Central for commercial development, and some C&WDC members raised objections on each occasion. Upon demolition of MRMCP, the number of public parking spaces for private cars and motorcycles in the Central and Western District will be reduced by 388 instantly (286 of which permanently) and 55 respectively. It has been reported that the Government also plans to rezone the sites of Rumsey Street Carpark and Star Ferry Carpark for commercial development. Some C&WDC members and local residents are worried that such carpark demolition plans will aggravate the problem of insufficient parking spaces in the district, thus worsening the problems of illegal parking, traffic congestion and roadside air pollution, etc., which increase social costs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) of the respective numbers and utilisation rates of parking spaces for various categories of vehicles in the Central and Western District during daytime peak hours and evening non-peak hours in each of the past three years; and the respective numbers of parking spaces in the Central and Western District for various categories of vehicles to be added in the coming three years;
(2) as the authorities have indicated that due to a lack of land and existing site constraints, there is no suitable site for the provision of temporary public parking spaces in the vicinity during the redevelopment of MRMCP site to make up for the shortfall in parking spaces caused by the demolition of the carpark, whether the Government has assessed if the parking spaces provided by nearby carparks can meet the demand for parking spaces in the district during the redevelopment; if it has assessed, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(3) given that only 102 public parking spaces for private cars (286 fewer than the existing number) and 69 public parking spaces for motorcycles will be provided at MRMCP site after redevelopment, of the criteria adopted by the Government for determining the number of parking spaces to be provided after the redevelopment, and whether it has assessed if such number can meet the demand for parking spaces in the district; if it has assessed and the outcome is in the affirmative, of the justifications for that; and
(4) of the details of and the implementation timetable for the plans to rezone the sites of Star Ferry Carpark and Rumsey Street Carpark for commercial development, as well as the consultation work carried out so far; whether the Government will withhold the implementation of the plans until after the completion of a car parking review with priority accorded to addressing the parking demand and supply of commercial vehicles, which is scheduled for commencement within this year?
Reply:
President,
My reply to the various parts of the Hon Frankie Yick's question is as follows.
(1) The numbers of parking spaces for various classes of vehicles (including public parking spaces provided by the Government, privately operated public parking spaces and parking spaces solely for private use) in the Central and Western District over the past three years (i.e. from 2014 to 2016) are set out in Annex 1. On utilisation rates, the Government does not have such statistics for the privately operated car parks. As regards the five Government multi-storey car parks in the Central and Western District managed by the Transport Department (TD), their average utilisation rates during the day period and night period in the past three years have been generally stable, and the details are set out in Annex 2.
In the coming three years, no major development projects are expected to be completed in the Central and Western District. As such, there will not be a significant increase in the number of parking spaces in the area. However, in subsequent years, some of the major development projects in the area (such as Site 3 of new Central Harbourfront (Site 3)) will be completed progressively. These major development projects will provide suitable number of parking spaces having regard to the standards stipulated in the Hong Kong Planning Standards and Guidelines (HKPSG) to meet the parking demand arising from the development. Where necessary, public parking spaces will also be provided in accordance with the requirements of the Government.
(2) At present, the Murray Road Multi-storey Carpark (MRMCP) in Central provides 388 parking spaces for private cars and 55 parking spaces for motor cycles. In the traffic impact assessment for the MRMCP redevelopment project conducted by the consultant commissioned by the Government, it was anticipated that there will be adequate supply of parking spaces for private cars for use by the public for peak and non-peak hours in car parks within 500 metres, i.e. about 15-minute walking distance (such as Harcourt Garden Car Park, Star Ferry Car Park (SFCP), City Hall Car Park, Cheung Kong Center Car Park and Citibank Plaza Car Park (Note 1)) during the period between the decommissioning of the MRMCP and the reprovisioning of parking spaces. For motor cycle parking spaces, there will be a partial shortfall during peak hours (Note 2).
(3) The traffic impact assessment conducted by the consultant mentioned above has based on a number of considerations in proposing the number of parking spaces to be reprovisioned for the MRMCP redevelopment project. These considerations included the supply and demand of parking spaces within about 300 metres (i.e. about 10-minute walking distance) of the site after its redevelopment, growth of traffic flow and the carrying capacity of adjacent roads. Apart from providing parking spaces having regard to the HKPSG to meet the parking demands arising from the development based on the gross floor areas of various uses, the development at MRMCP has to provide not less than 102 public parking spaces for private cars and 69 public parking spaces for motor cycles to compensate for the reduction in public parking spaces due to demolition of MRMCP.
(4) As advised by the Development Bureau (DEVB), according to the Urban Design Study for the New Central Harbourfront completed in 2011, Site 3 will be used mainly for commercial development such as office and retail uses with provision of a landscaped pedestrian deck, public open space and other supporting facilities. The planning brief for Site 3, which sets out the broad development parameters as well as the planning and design requirements of the site, was endorsed by the Metro Planning Committee of the Town Planning Board in December last year after consultation with the Harbourfront Commission and the Central and Western District Council. SFCP is located at the southern part of Site 3. According to the notional architectural scheme, to which reference was made during the drafting of the planning brief, SFCP will be developed as part of the at-grade public open space in Site 3. Some of the existing parking spaces will be suitably reprovisioned in the commercial development in Site 3, and SFCP will be demolished after the parking spaces are reprovisioned.
Specifically, taking into account the overall supply and future demand of parking spaces in Sheung Wan, Central and Admiralty, as well as the Government's long-term objective of improving the city's air quality, the planning brief required the provision of 325 public parking spaces when Site 3 is developed. In addition, around 520 ancillary parking spaces to serve office and retail uses within the site should also be provided in the future development of Site 3 having regard to the requirements of the HKPSG. Generally speaking, those parking spaces provided in support of retail use could be open for public use. The Government is taking forward the relocation of the existing government facilities on Site 3 and the authorisation of relevant roadworks. The site will be released to the market in due course upon completion of the relevant procedures.
As for the Rumsey Street Car Park, according to DEVB, the relevant departments will carry out technical assessments (including traffic impact assessment) on converting it into commercial use, and formulate development of the project taking into account the results of the technical assessments and other relevant factors. The implementation programme for redevelopment of Rumsey Street Car Park is pending further assessments and hence not available. After the relevant assessments are completed, the Government will consult the Central and Western District Council and proceed with the necessary town planning procedure.
The Government understands that there has been an increase in demand for various types of parking spaces in different districts. Our prevailing policy in the provision of parking spaces is to accord priority to considering and meeting the parking demand of commercial vehicles. With priority accorded to the parking demand of commercial vehicles and a transport policy centred on public transport, the Government will still provide an appropriate number of parking spaces for private cars if the overall development permits, but such should not attract those passengers of public transport to opt for private cars instead. TD will commence a car parking review soon this year with priority accorded to addressing the parking demand and supply of commercial vehicles to come up with appropriate measures to address the parking need of commercial vehicles, including updating the HKPSG. As no parking spaces for commercial vehicles are provided in the SFCP and the Rumsey Street Car Park, the Government does not consider it necessary to put on hold the redevelopment plans for these two car parks.
Note 1: Citibank Plaza Car Park is now known as Three Garden Road Car Park.
Note 2: The average utilisation rate of the five major car parks within about 500 metres of the MRMCP during peak hours is about 75 per cent.
Ends/Wednesday, February 15, 2017
Issued at HKT 14:00
Issued at HKT 14:00
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