Lawmaker lambasts govt’s Kai Tak Sports Park crowd dispersal plan

A lawmaker has lambasted the SAR government for saying that a backup plan to disperse the Kai Tak Sports Park crowd is to have people walk all the way to Diamond Hill MTR Station.

With the sports park set to open its doors in the first half of next year, including the Hong Kong Sevens and Coldplay concert scheduled to take place in March and April respectively, authorities said earlier that crowd dispersal will rely mainly on the MTR’s Tuen Ma Line.

Should the Tuen Ma Line fail to function, a backup plan is to have the crowd walk to Diamond Hill MTR Station - three kilometers away from the sports park, undersecretary for transport and logistics Liu Chun-san told LegCo on Monday.

Speaking on a radio program Tuesday morning, lawmaker Kitson Yang Wing-kit said the “Diamond Hill plan” was never an option for “any normal human being,” adding that the walking distance to the Choi Hung or Ho Man Tin station is much shorter than walking to Diamond Hill.

He also said people could opt for other modes of transportation on Prince Edward Road West or at To Kwa Wan.

Meanwhile, the lawmaker pointed out that senior government officials currently attach great importance to the opening of the sports park and called on authorities to announce more details early to members of the public. Authorities should also cater to different scenarios and carry out "full-load testing" when executing test runs, he added.

He said relying solely on the Tuen Ma Line for crowd dispersal would be insufficient, and authorities should consider using shuttle buses to bring the crowd to other areas, as well as consider the use of water transportation.