Special traffic and transport arrangements for Hong Kong Marathon 2018
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This year, the 10-kilometre races will continue to be held on the Island Eastern Corridor and the finishing point of the 10km races and half and full marathon races will be located at Victoria Park.
For the 10-km race, both the east- and west-bound carriageways of the Island Eastern Corridor between Victoria Park Road and Shau Kei Wan will be closed from 1.30am on Sunday. Traffic along the Island Eastern Corridor will be diverted to King's Road and Shau Kei Wan Road. Traffic to and from the Eastern Harbour Crossing will be diverted to the Sai Wan Ho exit/entrance.
For the half and full marathons, road closures and traffic diversions will be implemented in phases at various locations on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon and the New Territories from 11.30pm on Saturday. The races will continue to start at Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui, make use of Nathan Road (section from Tsim Sha Tsui to Argyle Street), Argyle Street, Cherry Street, Lin Cheung Road, West Kowloon Highway, Tsing Sha Highway, Stonecutters Bridge, Nam Wan Tunnel, Cheung Tsing Highway, Ting Kau Bridge, Cheung Tsing Highway, Cheung Tsing Tunnel, Tsing Kwai Highway, West Kowloon Highway, Western Harbour Crossing, Connaught Road West flyover, Man Po Street, Yiu Sing Street, Lung Wo Road, Fenwick Pier Street, Convention Avenue, Expo Drive, Expo Drive Central, Expo Drive East, Convention Avenue, Hung Hing Road, Marsh Road flyover, Lockhart Road, Percival Street, Hennessy Road, Yee Wo Street and Sugar Street, and will finish at Victoria Park.
Due to the continuous use of Nathan Road northbound between Tsim Sha Tsui and Argyle Street, Nathan Road southbound between Tsim Sha Tsui and Gascoigne Road flyover and Argyle Street as race routes for the half and full marathons in Kowloon side this year, the road closure involved in the Yau Tsim Mong area will be extensive. Traffic heading to and from the area (west of Nathan Road and south of Argyle Street) will be restricted to Prince Edward and Tsim Sha Tsui starting from 4am to about 10.15am on Sunday. Meanwhile, public transport services in the Yau Tsim Mong area will be subject to extensive adjustments. Members of the public heading to Mong Kok West, Jordan and Tsim Sha Tsui are particularly advised to switch to using railway services.
Similar to last year, Hennessy Road eastbound between Percival Street and Yee Wo Street and Yee Woo Street eastbound will be closed and continue to be used as the race route. Public transport services operating along Hennessy Road and Yee Wo Street (North Point bound) will also be diverted to other roads on the race day.
Since the full marathon will use the Kowloon-bound carriageways of Cheung Tsing Highway, Cheung Tsing Tunnel and Nam Wan Tunnel as the race route, vehicles from Lantau Link (Tsing Ma Bridge) to Kowloon will be diverted to use Tsing Yi North Coastal Road. It is anticipated that traffic at North Lantau Highway, Tsing Ma Toll Plaza, Tsing Ma Bridge and the vicinity of North West Tsing Yi Interchange may be congested.
The road closures will not affect vehicles from Hong Kong Island/Kowloon/New Territories East heading for the airport and Lantau Island. The Kowloon-bound tube of the Western Harbour Crossing will remain in operation. Due to the closure of Ting Kau Bridge (Kowloon bound), motorists travelling from New Territories West to the airport and Lantau Island via Tuen Mun Road or Tai Lam Tunnel will be diverted to use Tsuen Wan Road, Tsuen Tsing Interchange, Tsing Tsuen Road, Tsing Tsuen Bridge, Tam Kong Shan Interchange and Tsing Yi North Coastal Road heading for Tsing Ma Bridge.
The Hong Kong-bound tube of the Western Harbour Crossing will be closed from 12.45am on Sunday until the end of all marathon races and re-opening of roads. Motorists heading for Hong Kong Island are advised to use other tunnels.
In connection with the road closures for the marathon, about 240 bus routes and 40 green minibus routes will be diverted, truncated or suspended in phases from 11.15pm on Saturday until the re-opening of roads on Sunday. Affected bus routes include cross-harbour routes using the Eastern Harbour Crossing and the Western Harbour Crossing; routes on Hong Kong Island travelling along the Island Eastern Corridor and in Central and Western district, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay areas; routes in Kowloon operating along Nathan Road, Arygle Street, Shanghai Street, Jordan Road and other major trunk roads in Yau Tsim Mong area; as well as routes operating via Ting Kau Bridge, Cheung Tsing Highway, Cheung Tsing Tunnel and Nam Wan Tunnel. The following bus termini will be suspended:
Hong Kong Island: Tin Hau Station Public Transport Interchange, Expo Drive East Bus Terminus, Wan Chai North Temporary Public Transport Interchange, Central Ferry Piers Bus Terminus and Whitfield Road Bus Terminus.
Kowloon: China Hong Kong City Public Transport Interchange, Jordan (To Wah Road) Bus Terminus and Mong Kok (Park Avenue) Bus Terminus.
To enable participants to go to Tsim Sha Tsui or Victoria Park in Causeway Bay to prepare for the races, the first departures of Mass Transit Railway services will be advanced on Sunday. Details are as follows:
| Lines | Directions | First departures from terminal stations |
| Island Line | From Chai Wan to Kennedy Town |
3.56am |
| Island Line | From Kennedy Town to Chai Wan |
4.08am |
| Tsuen Wan Line | From Tsuen Wan to Central |
3.55am |
| Tsuen Wan Line | From Central to Tsuen Wan |
4.22am |
| Kwun Tong Line | From Tiu King Leng to Whampoa |
3.46am |
| Kwun Tong Line | From Whampoa to Tiu King Leng |
4.08am |
| Tseung Kwan O Line | From LOHAS Park to North Point |
3.57am |
| Tseung Kwan O Line | From Po Lam to North Point |
4am |
| South Island Line | From South Horizons to Admiralty |
4.02am |
| East Rail Line | From Sheung Shui to Hung Hom |
3.25am |
| Ma On Shan Line | From Wu Kai Sha to Tai Wai |
3.30am |
| West Rail Line | From Tuen Mun to Hung Hom |
3.25am |
| Tung Chung Line | From Tung Chung to Hong Kong | 3.40am |
Furthermore, 25 special bus services will be operated for runners going to Tsim Sha Tsui or Causeway Bay on Sunday, including R215, R230, R241, R260, R261, R269, R270, R271, R283 and R287 to Tsim Sha Tsui; and R108, R307, R603, R673, R678, R680, R930, R934, R936, R948, R960, R961, R962, R968 and R969 to Causeway Bay.
During the road closure period, bus stops, taxi stands, taxi pick-up/drop-off points, public light bus/green minibus stands, roadside parking spaces and private car parks within the closed roads and its vicinity, as well as the tram stop on Percival Street will be suspended.
The terminus of the cross boundary coach service between Wan Chai and Huanggang at the Wan Chai North Temporary Public Transport Interchange will be suspended from 4.30am on Sunday until the re-opening of roads. A temporary terminus will be provided at Hennessy Road eastbound underneath O'Brien Road footbridge.
The commencement time of the pedestrian precinct on Chater Road in Central as well as Lockhart Road, East Point Road and Great George Street in Causeway Bay will be postponed to 3pm on Sunday or upon the re-opening of the major roads on Hong Kong Island.
Taxi and public light bus drivers who go to Wan Chai North for gasoline refilling are advised to take note of the road closures in the area.
Members of the public and tourists heading for Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal, Hong Kong Airport Express Line (AEL) Station, Kowloon AEL Station, China Ferry Terminal (China Hong Kong City) or Ocean Terminal are advised to plan their journey in advance to avoid any delay caused by road closures and traffic diversions.
The TD anticipates that the traffic at various locations on Hong Kong Island, in Kowloon and the New Territories will be more significantly congested compared with normal Sundays, including:
- Hong Kong Island: Shau Kei Wan, Sai Wan Ho, North Point, Tin Hau, Causeway Bay, Wan Chai and Central Ferry Pier areas, including King's Road, Shau Kei Wan Road, Victoria Park Road, Hennessy Road, Leighton Road, Gloucester Road, Queensway, Connaught Road Central, and Aberdeen Tunnel (Wan Chai bound);
- Kowloon: Yau Tsim Mong area including the vicinity of Nathan Road and Arygle Street, Wylie Road, Gascoigne Road flyover, West Kowloon Corridor and Cross Harbour Tunnel (both bounds), with the chance of long traffic queues along Gascoigne Road flyover and West Kowloon Corridor in particular being very high; and
- New Territories South: Kowloon bound Lantau Link and North West Tsing Yi Interchange.
Motorists are advised to avoid driving to the above affected areas. In case of traffic congestion, motorists should exercise patience and follow the instructions of the Police on site.
Members of the public should plan their journeys early and use alternative travelling routes to avoid unexpected delay, as well as take public transport services (particularly railway services) as far as possible. Public transport commuters are advised to pay attention to the arrangements for route diversion and changes of stop locations.
Other ad-hoc traffic and public transport measures, including adjusting the extent of road closure, traffic diversion, alteration and suspension of public transport services may be implemented by the Police at short notice depending on the actual traffic and crowd conditions. The TD and the Police will closely monitor the traffic situation and implement appropriate measures whenever necessary. Members of the public are advised to stay alert to the latest traffic news released via the media.
For information about the special traffic and transport information, members of the public may call 1823 Call Centre, browse the TD's website at www.td.gov.hk or make use of the TD's "eTraffic News" mobile application.
Ends/Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Issued at HKT 18:41
Issued at HKT 18:41
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