New way for 36,000 vehicles a day

As many as 36,000 vehicles a day - or 40 percent of traffic burden from the 22-year-old Tseung Kwan O Tunnel - are expected to be diverted to the new Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel and Cross Bay Link.

It will open at 8am on December 11, transport authorities announced.

The new tunnel will shorten the commute between Tseung Kwan O Town Centre and the Eastern Harbour crossing - about seven kilometers via the Tseung Kwan O Tunnel - to just 4.2km.

The new 3.8km tunnel will in the west connect to Cha Kwo Ling Road and the Eastern Harbour Crossing, as well as the T2 trunk road and Cha Kwo Ling Tunnel in Kwun Tong, both of which are now under construction. In the east, the tunnel will connect to Po Shun Road and the Cross Bay Link.

"It will divert an estimated 30 to 40 percent of traffic from the Tseung Kwan O Tunnel," said Michael Leung Chung-lap, project manager of the Civil Engineering and Development Department's east development office.

That estimate means some 36,000 vehicles at most. But it is subject to change, said the assistant commissioner for transport, Ricky Ho Wai-kee.

Visual displays indicating drivers' estimated time of arrival will be installed on overhead road signs. Two interchanges will be at the ends of the tunnel. The Lam Tin interchange is next to the Eastern Harbor Crossing Toll Plaza, while the Tseung Kwan O interchange will be at Junk Bay, at the western end of the Cross Bay Link.

The toll fee at Tseung Kwan O Tunnel will be waived from midnight on December 11, eight hours before the Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel opens to the public.

When commissioned alongside the Tseung Kwan O-Lam Tin Tunnel, the Cross Bay Link will shorten the journey between Lohas park and Kwun Tong Town Centre by up to 20 minutes during morning peak hours. The 1.8km link, a dual two-lane carriageway with a bike lane and a footway, is the first of its kind in Hong Kong. Motor vehicles running on the link will be subject to a speed limit of 80km an hour

The link will connect with the bike lanes and footpaths surrounding Junk Bay to form a scenic five-km track along the coastline.

New routes run by Kowloon Motor Bus and New World First Bus will begin operation on December 12.

Two to three months later, four existing bus routes will run on the new tunnel and link.

cjames.lee@singtaonewscorp.com