Rush to new bridge-tunnel route

Traffic was jammed for up to four hours at one point on the first day of operation at the long-awaited Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel and the Cross Bay Link.

The new toll-free route, which opened at 8am yesterday, is expected to save people around 20 minutes when they travel between Lohas Park and Kwun Tong during rush hours.

A driver said it took him eight minutes to get to Kwun Tong from Lohas Park via the new tunnel and bridge early on yesterday morning, but thousands of commuters taking new routes later experienced a heavy traffic jams lasting for hours.

Traffic began piling on Cha Kwo Ling Road hours at a bottleneck near the entrance of the new tunnel at about 1.30pm, and to make matters worse a collision between two private cars closed parts of Cha Kwo Ling Road at the Lam Tin Interchange.

Traffic remained congested at 5pm yesterday even after the two cars were removed, with the queue stretching back to Laguna City in Kwun Tong.

Traffic at the Tseung Kwan O-bound entrance of the new tunnel was also congested. That had Transport Department officers urging drivers to consider using alternative routes such as the Tseung Kwan O Tunnel to get between Tseung Kwan O and Kwun Tong.

The snarl-ups came after toll fees were waived from Saturday midnight for the Tseung Kwan O Tunnel, previously the main route connecting Tseung Kwan O and Kwun Tong.

Secretary for Transport Lam Sai-hung said the Transport Department's traffic control center was keeping a close watch on the situation and would make adjustments to traffic lights to divert traffic if necessary. In fact, he admitted, traffic conditions could remain "chaotic" today, so contingency plans were in place.

He noted too that police officers and Transport Department personnel had been stationed at Po Yap Road and Po Shun Road in Tseung Kwan O, as well as in the vicinity of Wai Yip Street in Kwun Tong to divert traffic.

Kowloon East constituency legislator Frankie Ngan Man-yu of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong remarked that more and clearer signboards were needed. "There was a lack of signage near the Kwun Tong swimming pool to remind drivers to choose between Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel or Tseung Kwan O Tunnel," he said.

That required more police officers being deployed to problem areas, he said, as the increased traffic and the new roads would cause congestion in Cha Kwo Ling and on the Kwun Tong bypass.

But Stanley Li Sai-wing, a legislator for the New Territories South East constituency, said the gridlock was caused by illegal parking, which transport planners had failed to take into account when they "idealized" the new situation.

And public transport joins the fray today with five new franchised bus routes from Kowloon Motor Bus, New World First Bus and Citybus using the new tunnel for peak-hour services between Tseung Kwan O and Tai Po, Tsuen Wan, Sham Shui Po, Cheung Sha Wan and Tsim Sha Tsui.

The first bus on route 96 from Tseung Kwan O will set the wheels rolling in going through the Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin tunnel. Two routes offer express services for residents in Lohas Park, Pak Shing Kok, and Hang Hau.

On route 290E, Lohas Park residents will be able to reach Tsuen Wan via Wong Tai Sin and Kwai Chung, with a 40-minute journey to Kwai Fong. The journey to Mong Kok on route 298X will take 30 minutes. "The two routes offering express services shave up to 20 minutes off the journey time on previously existing routes," noted KMB's head of corporate communications, Kenny Kan Hok-hei.

Interchange services are also offered along with discounts.

Passengers switching from route 96 buses to route 89D at Tate's Cairn Tunnel or 75K at Tai Ping Industrial Centre will only have to pay HK$9.50 for the first leg of the journey.

The bus operator will also evaluate commuters' transport habits and the traffic situation three months on to determine whether it needs to make adjustments to the new routes or to add new ones.

Citybus and NWFB also launched two Lohas Express routes today, with route 790 taking Lohas Park residents to the Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok areas along Nathan Road in some 25 minutes while route 795 offers a direct route to Mong Kok and Cheung Sha Wan.

Away from the jams, Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said he was relieved the new roads were running smoothly and that authorities were deploying more manpower to tackle the challenge of operating the new routes on the first working day of the week.

"We will investigate how to improve the facilities on the Cross Bay Link to make it more convenient for citizens to walk and cycle," he added.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said in his blog that more than 360 kilometers of roads have been built in the past 25 years since the handover, adding that government personnel will continue to promote "infrastructure-led" and "capacity-creating" transportation projects to improve citizens' living environments and quality of life.

cjames.lee@singtaonewscorp.com

James Lee

Traffic was jammed for up to four hours at one point, at the long-awaited Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel and the Cross Bay Link on its first day of operation.

The new toll-free route, which opened to the public at 8am yesterday, is expected to save commuters around 20 minutes when they travel between Lohas Park and Kwun Tong during rush hours.

A driver said it took him eight minutes to get to Kwun Tong from Lohas Park via the new tunnel and bridge yesterday morning, but thousands of commuters taking the new routes later experienced a heavy traffic jam lasting for at least four hours.

Traffic began piling on Cha Kwo Ling Road hours later at a bottleneck near the entrance of the new tunnel at about 1.30pm, and to make matters worse, a collision between two private cars closed down parts of Cha Kwo Ling Road at the Lam Tin Interchange.

Traffic remained congested at 5pm yesterday even after the two cars were removed from the scene, stretching as far back as Laguna City in Kwun Tong.

The Transport Department announced that traffic at the Tseung Kwan O-bound entrance of the new tunnel was also congested, urging drivers to consider using alternative routes such as Tseung Kwan O Tunnel to travel between Tseung Kwan O and Kwun Tong.

That came as toll fees were waived yesterday at midnight for Tseung Kwan O Tunnel - previously the main route connecting Tseung Kwan O and Kwun Tong.

Speaking on a TV program yesterday, Secretary for Transport Lam Sai-hung said the Transport Department's traffic control center will keep a close eye on the situation and make adjustments to traffic lights in real time to divert traffic if necessary.

"Traffic conditions may be chaotic since (tomorrow) is the first weekday that the new roads are in service," he said, adding that authorities would have adequate traffic control measures in place.

He also said department personnel and police officers were stationed at Po Yap Road and Po Shun Road in Tseung Kwan O, as well as in the vicinity of Wai Yip Street in Kwun Tong yesterday to divert traffic.

Kowloon East constituency legislator Frankie Ngan Man-yu of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong said clearer sign boards could be put up.

"There was a lack of signage near the Kwun Tong Swimming Pool reminding drivers to choose between Tseung Kwan O Lam Tin Tunnel or Tseung Kwan O Tunnel," he said, calling on the government to deploy police officers to relevant areas as the increased traffic on the new roads would cause traffic congestion in Cha Kwo Ling and Kwun Tong Bypass.

New Territories South East constituency lawmaker Stanley Li Sai-wing said the gridlock was caused by illegal parking in the area, which the government failed to consider as they had "idealized" the planning process.

Public transport joins the fray today with five new franchised bus routes by the Kowloon Motor Bus company, New World First Bus and Citybus using the new tunnel for peak-hour services between Tseung Kwan O and Tai Po, Tsuen Wan, Sham Shui Po, Cheung Sha Wan and Tsim Sha Tsui.

The first bus on route 96 will make its maiden voyage from Tseung Kwan O - making it the first bus from Tseung Kwan O to pass through the Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin tunnel.

Two routes offer express services for residents in Lohas Park, Pak Shing Kok, and Hang Hau. On route 290E, Lohas Park residents will be able to reach Tsuen Wan via Wong Tai Sin and Kwai Chung, with a 40 minute journey to Kwai Fong, while the journey to Mong Kok on route 298X will take 30 minutes.

"The two routes offering express services shave up to 20 minutes off the journey time on previously existing routes," said KMB head of corporate communications Kenny Kan Hok-hei.

Interchange services are also offered along with discounts. Passengers interchanging from route 96 buses to route 89D at Tate's Cairn Tunnel or 75K at Tai Ping Industrial Centre will only have to pay HKD$9.5 for the first leg of the journey.

The bus operator will also evaluate commuters' transport habits and the traffic situation three months later to determine whether it needs to make adjustments to the new lines or add new ones.

Citybus and NWFB also launched two "Lohas Express" routes today, with route 790 bringing Lohas Park residents to the Tsim Sha Tsui and Mong Kok area along Nathan Road in some 25 minutes, and route 795 offering a direct route to Mong Kok and Cheung Sha Wan.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said he was relieved that the new roads were running smoothly, and that authorities will deploy more manpower to tackle the challenge of operating the new route on the first working day of the week.

"We will investigate how to improve the facilities on the Cross Bay Link to make it more convenient for citizens to walk and cycle," he said.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said in his blog that more than 360 kilometers of roads have been built in the past 25 years since the handover, adding that the government will continue to promote "infrastructure-led" and "capacity-creating" transportation infrastructure projects to improve citizens' living environment and quality of life.

cjames.lee@singtaonewscorp.com