Special traffic and transport arrangements for Hong Kong Marathon 2024
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This year, the full and half marathon races will start at Nathan Road in Tsim Sha Tsui. The full marathon race will route through major road sections including Nathan Road (from Granville Road to Argyle Street), Argyle Street, Lin Cheung Road, West Kowloon Highway, Stonecutters Bridge, Nam Wan Tunnel, Ting Kau Bridge, Cheung Tsing Tunnel, Tsing Kwai Highway, the Western Harbour Crossing (WHC), Connaught Road West flyover, Lung Wo Road, Expo Drive, Hung Hing Road, Lockhart Road, Percival Street, Hennessy Road, Yee Wo Street and Sugar Street, and finish at Victoria Park. The half marathon race route will follow that of the full marathon race from the starting point at Nathan Road to Lin Cheung Road with the turning point at Tsing Kwai Highway and then rejoin the full marathon race route at West Kowloon Highway.
As for other races, the starting point will be set at different locations on Hong Kong Island while all the finishing points will be set at Victoria Park. The 10-kilometre race will start at the Island Eastern Corridor (IEC) near the exit/entrance of Central-Wan Chai Bypass Tunnel (CWBT) and run along the IEC eastwards to the turning point near Oi Tak Street and then return to the finishing point. The 10-kilometre wheelchair race will start at Wan Chai Sports Ground and route through Hung Hing Road, Expo Drive, Lung Wo Road and Central Ferry Piers area and then return to run along Lung Wo Road, Hung Hing Road, Lockhart Road and Hennessey Road heading for the finishing point. The Wheelchair Trial and Leaders Cup will also start at Wan Chai Sports Ground and route through Hung Hing Road and Marsh Road and then rejoin the 10-kilometre wheelchair race route heading for the finishing point.
According to the arrangements for the full and half marathon race routes, temporary closure of major road sections and their vicinities in Yau Tsim Mong area will be implemented extensively, including (i) the whole section of Nathan Road (in both directions) between Salisbury Road and Gascoigne Road, (ii) the northbound carriageway of Nathan Road between Gascoigne Road and Argyle Street, and (iii) the westbound carriageway of Argyle Street between Nathan Road and Tong Mi Road. The above road sections will be reopened at or before about 10.15am in phases, subject to the progress of the races. At the same time, public transport services in this area will also be subject to extensive adjustments. Members of the public heading to this area are advised to use railway services.
Moreover, 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 on Lantau Link (Tsing Ma Bridge) heading to Kowloon will be diverted to use North West Tsing Yi Interchange, Tsing Yi North Coastal Road, Tsing Tsuen Road, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Cheung Sha Wan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road. It is anticipated that traffic congestion along North Lantau Highway, Tsing Ma Bridge and the vicinity of North West Tsing Yi Interchange may occur.
The above road closures will not affect vehicles from Hong Kong Island/Kowloon/New Territories East heading for Hong Kong International Airport and Lantau Island. Vehicles from the New Territories West to the airport and Lantau Island could travel via Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Tunnel. Due to the closure of Kowloon-bound carriageway of Ting Kau Bridge, vehicles travelling via Tuen Mun Road or Tai Lam Tunnel to the airport and Lantau Island will be diverted to use Tsuen Wan Road, Tsuen Tsing Interchange, Tsing Tsuen Road, Tsing Tsuen Bridge and Tsing Yi North Coastal Road to enter Tsing Ma Bridge.
During the races, the Kowloon-bound tube of the WHC will remain opened, while the Hong Kong-bound tube of the WHC will be temporarily closed from 0.45am on Sunday till about 1.15pm, subject to the progress of the races. Motorists in Kowloon West heading for Hong Kong Island are advised to use the Cross-Harbour Tunnel or Eastern Harbour Crossing (EHC). For the race routes in Causeway Bay, Yee Woo Street eastbound will be temporarily closed to serve as a race route. Most of the public transport services operating along Yee Wo Street (in the direction of North Point) will be diverted to use Percival Street, Leighton Road and Pennington Street during the closure period.
According to the arrangements for the 10-kilometre race, both bound carriageways of the IEC between Victoria Park Road and Shau Kei Wan, and the CWBT linking to and from the IEC will be closed from 1.30am on Sunday, and traffic will be diverted via appropriate alternative routes such as Connaught Road Central, Gloucester Road, King's Road, Shau Kei Wan Road, etc. Traffic to and from the EHC will be diverted to the Sai Wan Ho or Kornhill exit/entrance. Depending on the progress of the races, different sections of the CWBT will be reopened in phases to minimise the impact on traffic. Upon the anticipated reopening of the IEC eastbound before noon, the section of the CWBT between Central and North Point will be reopened while the Wan Chai North exit from and entrance to the CWBT will be closed for most of the race time.
In connection with the road closure arrangement, starting from 11.15pm on Saturday until the reopening of the roads, about 210 daytime bus routes and 35 daytime green minibus (GMB) routes will be subject to suspension, truncation or diversion, and the stopping points concerned of the affected bus and GMB services will be relocated accordingly in phases. Also, about 45 overnight bus routes and six overnight green minibus routes to be affected by the road closures will be subject to the associated service adjustments. These affected bus routes include the cross-harbour routes and bus services operating in the following areas:
Hong Kong Island - bus routes operating along the IEC, the CWBT, in Central and Western District, Wan Chai and Causeway Bay areas;
Kowloon - bus routes operating along Nathan Road, Argyle Street, Shanghai Street, Jordan Road and Yau Tsim Mong areas; and
New Territories - bus routes operating along Ting Kau Bridge, Cheung Tsing Highway, Cheung Tsing Tunnel and Nam Wan Tunnel.
The following bus termini and public transport interchanges on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon will be suspended:
Hong Kong Island - Tin Hau Station Public Transport Interchange, Expo Drive East Bus Terminus, Central Ferry Piers Bus Terminus and Whitfield Road Bus Terminus; and
Kowloon - China Hong Kong City Public Transport Interchange and Star Ferry Pier Public Transport Interchange
To enable participants of the full/half marathon and 10-kilometre races that start in the early morning to go to Tsim Sha Tsui or Causeway Bay, the first departures of eight rail lines of MTR services will be advanced suitably on Sunday, with the first departures on the Tuen Ma Line and East Rail Line to be operated at 3.25am. In addition, 28 special bus routes will also be operated to serve participants going to Tsim Sha Tsui and Causeway Bay on Sunday.
During the road closure period, bus stops, taxi stands, taxi pick-up/drop-off points, public light bus/GMB stands, roadside parking spaces and private car parks within the closed roads and their vicinities may be suspended subject to the situation.
The commencement time of the pedestrian precinct on Lockhart Road, East Point Road and Great George Street in Causeway Bay will be postponed to 3pm on Sunday subject to the road reopening situation in the vicinity of Causeway Bay.
Members of the public and tourists heading for Hong Kong - Macau Ferry Terminal, Hong Kong Station and Kowloon Station of the Airport Express Line, Hong Kong West Kowloon Station of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, China Ferry Terminal (China Hong Kong City) or Ocean Terminal are advised to plan their journeys early to avoid any delays caused by road closures and traffic diversions.
The TD anticipates that the traffic at various locations on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon and the New Territories will be more significantly congested when compared with normal Sundays, including:
Hong Kong Island - King's Road, Shau Kei Wan Road, Victoria Park Road, Leighton Road, Hennessy Road, Gloucester Road, Queensway, Connaught Road Central, Aberdeen Tunnel (Wan Chai bound) and Central Ferry Piers areas;
Kowloon - Nathan Road and its vicinity, Argyle Street, Wylie Road, Gascoigne Road flyover, West Kowloon Corridor and Cross-Harbour Tunnel (both bounds), with a higher chance of long traffic queues along Gascoigne Road flyover and West Kowloon Corridor; and
New Territories - Lantau Link (Kowloon bound) and North West Tsing Yi Interchange.
Motorists should avoid driving to the above affected areas. In case of traffic congestion, they should exercise patience and drive with care, and follow the instructions of the Police on site.
Members of the public should plan their journeys early and use alternative routes to avoid unexpected delays, and take railway services as far as possible. Public transport users are advised to pay attention to the arrangements of route diversions and changes of stop locations.
Other ad-hoc traffic and public transport measures, including adjusting the extent of road closures, traffic diversions, alterations and suspensions of public transport services, may be implemented by the Police on site 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 through the media.
For information about the above special traffic and transport adjustments, members of the public may browse the TD's website at www.td.gov.hk or the "HKeMobility" mobile application.
Ends/Monday, January 15, 2024
Issued at HKT 19:50
Issued at HKT 19:50
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