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Following is a question by the Hon Tam Yiu-chung and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport, Mr Nicholas Ng, in the Legislative Council today (January 16):
Question: Several serious traffic accidents have taken place on Tung Chung Road recently, and the north-south access of Lantau Island was paralyzed every time. Residents' groups consider that while residents of Lantau Island have no choice but to accept the Government's proposal to widen Tung Chung Road as an alternative to constructing the Lantau North-South Road Link, the life of the residents, local and foreign visitors cannot be protected expeditiously as the scheme will not be completed until 2006. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of traffic accidents on Tung Chung Road last year and their casualty toll; and how these figures compare to those of the preceding two years;
(b) of the current respective numbers of valid Lantau Closed Road permits issued in respect of the various types of vehicles;
(c) whether there are plans to prohibit heavy vehicles and tankers from using Tung Chung Road; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;
(d) whether it will set up an inter-departmental Tung Chung Road Emergency Transport Co-ordination Centre to take up the coordination role in case of emergency, so as to strengthen the ability to cope with contingencies; if so, of the details, if not, the reasons for that; and
(e) whether it will take measures to expedite the progress of Tung Chung Road improvement scheme, including streamlining the relevant procedures and carrying out the works by sections concurrently, etc.; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
Reply
Madam President,
In 2001, a total of 36 traffic accidents occurred on Tung Chung Road, of which nine involved personal injuries resulting in 26 casualties (two serious and 24 slight injuries) but no fatalities. A comparison of the accident statistics with those of 1999 and 2000 is set out in the table below -
The number of accidents in 2001 (36) is slightly less than the average number of accidents for the past two years (39). The number of casualties in 2001 (26) is much less than that of the average for the past two years (35.5).
Year Total nos.of Those without Those
Accidents Injuries Involving
Injuries
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1999 35 28 7
2000 43 32 11
2001 36 27 9
Year Serious Injuries Slight Injuries Total
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1999 1 7 8
2000 10 53 63
2001 2 24 26
With the exception of the North Lantau Highway and the roads in the airport and Tung Chung New Town, all other roads on Lantau are closed roads where access by vehicles is regulated by a closed road permit system. As at end of 2001, 3,374 vehicles were issued with closed road permits for Lantau. A breakdown of the permits by vehicle types is at Annex.
In addition to being a closed road, Tung Chung Road is also a prohibited zone. Except franchised buses serving on routes in the area, Lantau taxis and emergency vehicles, all vehicles using Tung Chung Road between 8.00a.m. and 6.00p.m. are required to possess prohibited zone permits. For heavy vehicles (above 5.5 tonnes in weight), the prohibition extends to 24 hours a day, i.e., such vehicles are required to possess permits in order to use Tung Chung Road any time of the day. In view of the complications in handling overturned tankers on Tung Chung Road as experienced in a recent traffic incident, the Transport Department (TD) will propose to the Islands District Council Traffic and Transport Committee to ban tankers carrying dangerous goods from using Tung Chung Road. If the proposal is accepted by the District Council, dangerous goods vehicles accessing South Lantau will be required to use waterborne transport via the Mui Wo Vehicular Ferry Pier, same as the arrangement prior to the opening of Lantau Link.
Inter-departmental co-ordination with standing emergency procedures is already in place to tackle any traffic incidents on Tung Chung Road. For incidents, which require closure of Tung Chung Road, representatives of the departments concerned and parties involved will arrive at the scene in the first instance to handle the situation and implement remedial measures. TD's Emergency Transport Co-ordination Centre (ETCC), which is manned 24 hours a day, will liaise with relevant departments including the Traffic Police and the firemen on site, to monitor development of the incident and to arrange for alternative public transport services, if necessary. Information on the road closure and emergency transport arrangements will be released through the Information Services Department, the electronic media and Internet. The ETCC will also maintain close liaison with the Islands District Office. Through the District Office, the major local organisations and District Council members involved are kept informed of the road closure situation and the emergency transport arrangements. Whilst there is still room for further enhancing public information dissemination and recovery procedures to tackle traffic incidents of different nature and causes, the current inter-departmental set-up is able to respond to the incidents promptly and is working effectively.
Over the past years, we have completed various improvement works to enhance safety of Tung Chung Road. These include the addition of seven new passing bays, lengthening of four existing passing bays, the widening of 25 local road sections, the addition of 20 warning signs to drivers before road bends, and the installation of over 400 meters safety fences to minimise the risk of vehicles running off the road and falling down the adjacent slopes. In addition, we have improved access control at the northern entry of Tung Chung Road by providing a roundabout with prominent signs and road markings for turning away vehicles without permits, and the provision of a kiosk for inspecting permits. In 2002, we will continue to carry out a series of improvement works including road widening works, provision of additional passing bays, and the laying of anti-skid surfacing materials. We will also construct a temporary road link connecting Tung Chung Road at Lung Tseng Tau to Chung Yat Street to reduce head-on vehicle conflict on the existing single traffic lane on Tung Chung Road between Lung Tseng Tau and Pa Mei.
In parallel, we are pushing ahead with the implementation of a better standard Lantau north-south road along the existing Tung Chung Road alignment with a target completion date of 2006. The one-kilometer long section of Tung Chung Road between Lung Tseng Tau and Pa Mei will be completed by the end of 2003. For the section between Lung Tseng Tau and Cheung Sha, we have commissioned consultants to carry out preliminary design of the project to enable us to proceed with the statutory procedures under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance and the Roads (Works, Use and Compensation) Ordinance, the detailed design and ground investigation, and land resumption, etc.
We are fully aware of the urgency of the improvement project and will take all possible steps to advance the programme of the project. We will carry out the necessary administrative and legal procedures, detailed design and ground investigation, etc. concurrently, where possible. Construction works will also be carried out at different locations concurrently. We plan to invite tenders for the works towards the end of 2003, commence the construction in early 2004 and complete the works in phases from end of 2005 to end of 2006.
End/Wednesday, January 16, 2002Annex
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Types of Vehicles Number of Vehicles Issued with Lantau
Closed Road Permits
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Private Car 2,284
Government Vehicle 248
Goods Vehicle 548
Buses 150
Motor Cycle 90
Taxi 50
Special Purpose Vehicle 4
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Total 3,374
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