Transport Management

Effective transport management is essential for the orderly and safe operation of the transport system. The Government's regulatory powers are provided under the Road Traffic Ordinance. Every effort is made to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of transport management through the use of modern technology in the various areas elaborated below.

Licensing

By the end of 2003, Hong Kong had 1 659 249 licensed drivers and 524 253 licensed vehicles and government vehicles. There were 338 930 licensed private cars, and 22 821 new private cars were registered during the year. Registered goods vehicles totalled 121 587, of which 75 987 were light goods vehicles. The average number of new learner-drivers was 4 369 per month. Since the introduction of the Driving-offence Points System in August 1984, 68 734 disqualifications have been ordered by the courts and 648 838 notices served under the Road Traffic (Driving-offence Points) Ordinance. The figures for 2003 were 2 992 and 35 545, respectively. Over the past five years, 426 402 drivers have incurred Driving-offence Points for committing scheduled offences under the Driving-offence Points System.

Driver Improvement Scheme

The Government launched the Driver Improvement Scheme in September 2002 to promote road safety through the improvement of the participants' driving attitude/behaviour and reminding them of the requirement to comply with traffic regulations. Four driving improvement schools were designated to provide the driving improvement course. A driver is allowed to join a driving improvement course voluntarily and the courts are also empowered to direct drivers who have committed relevant offences to attend the course. A driver will have three driving-offence points deducted from his/her total driving-offence points already incurred, subject to satisfactory completion of the course and issue of a certificate by one of the designated driving improvement schools.

From September 2002 to December 2003, nearly 2 000 drivers had attended the driving improvement course. The feedback from the course participants was encouraging and positive. They found the course useful in improving driving practices and fostering good driving attitudes. Statistics also showed that about 80 per cent of the participants did not incur new driving-offence points within six months of the completion of the course, reflecting its usefulness.

Computerisation of Written Test

To provide better customer service and to streamline arrangements concerning the written test that is part of the procedure for obtaining a driving licence, the Transport Department computerised the written test from October 20. Under the new user-friendly environment, candidates will know their results as soon as they have completed the written test, and successful applicants will be able to make appointments for road tests in 15 minutes. The average waiting time for taking written tests has been shortened from 40 days to 30 days.

Vehicle Examination

Vehicles are examined to ensure that they are roadworthy and properly maintained. Compulsory annual inspection applies to all public service vehicles, goods vehicles and trailers. In 2003, 195 900 vehicles were examined at the four government vehicle examination centres. Private cars over six years old and light goods vehicles not exceeding 1.9 tonnes are inspected annually at 23 designated car testing centres operated by the private sector. These centres conducted 148 300 vehicle examinations during the year. In addition, 3 594 spot checks were conducted on franchised buses to ensure their safety, roadworthiness and service standards.

A chassis dynamometer has been installed in the Kowloon Bay Vehicle Examination Centre to perform random checks of smoke emissions from loaded diesel vehicles. Another chassis dynamometer will be installed in the same Vehicle Examination Centre in 2004.

New vehicle models imported into Hong Kong are required to undergo type approval to ensure their compliance with the relevant statutory requirements. In 2003, 449 vehicle types were approved. To facilitate type approval application by authorised vehicle dealers, a 'one-stop' approval service was implemented in July. In the past, applicants had to submit applications separately to the Transport Department, Electrical and Mechanical Services Department and Environment Protection Department. The 'one-stop' mechanism now enables dealers to make a single submission to the Transport Department, greatly simplifying the application process.

Booking of examination appointments on the Internet has been extended to include trailers, and electronic payment is now possible at all vehicle examination centres, providing additional convenience for users. Vehicle Appointment Status Display Systems have been installed at the New Kowloon Bay Vehicle Examination Centre, Kowloon Bay Vehicle Examination Centre and To Kwa Wan Vehicle Examination Centre showing the available examination slots in the next five months, assisting the public in making appointments.

Traffic Control and Surveillance

The use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras continues to provide real-time traffic information to government departments for monitoring traffic and allowing them to react quickly in case of a traffic disruption or an emergency. There are 146 cameras installed in the urban areas of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, Sha Tin and Tsuen Wan and another 48 cameras are operating along Tuen Mun Road, West Kowloon Highway, North Lantau Highway, San Tin Highway and Fanling Highway and along roads leading to boundary crossings.

The Transport Department commenced the construction of a Traffic Control Centre (TCC) in mid-2002 for completion by early 2004. The TCC will accommodate Area Traffic Control (ATC) systems in the new towns, the Emergency Transport Coordination Centre (ETCC) and the monitoring system of the Tsing Ma Communication Centre (TMCC) to facilitate traffic management, incident management and dissemination of information. This project is progressing satisfactorily. The major component systems, including the ATC, ETCC and TMCC, have been operating in the TCC since October. Their respective CCTV facilities will be integrated by early 2004.

The ATC system is being expanded to 122 signalised junctions in Tai Po and North District. This project will also include 30 CCTV cameras. Delivery of the system components will commence in early 2004 for testing and system commissioning later in the year.

At year-end, 1 660 signalised junctions were in operation, and 1 156 of them were controlled by ATC systems.

Use of Information Technology in Transport

Reliable and comprehensive transport information enables commuters to make informed choices of routes and modes of transport resulting in more efficient use of road space, smoother traffic flow, enhanced road safety and improved accessibility.

A contract for the implementation of the Transport Information System (TIS) was awarded in May. Upon completion, the TIS will become a central data warehouse which will provide more transport information to the public and enhance the operation of the Transport Department and other departments. It will also facilitate the development of services in the private sector such as car navigation and fleet management. The system is scheduled for commissioning in phases from mid-2004.

Under the Journey Time Indication System, journey time indicators are provided along the approach roads to the three cross-harbour tunnels on Hong Kong Island to inform motorists of the estimated travel time to the Kowloon exits, so that they may make a more informed choice concerning the route to be taken. The first indicator on Gloucester Road, located near Revenue Tower, was put into service in June and the remaining two on the Island Eastern Corridor and the Canal Road Flyover were commissioned in December.

Automatic Toll Collection

Automatic toll collection systems (autotoll systems) were installed at the Cross-Harbour and Aberdeen Tunnels in August 1993, Lion Rock Tunnel in August 1994, Eastern Harbour Crossing in September 1995, Tate's Cairn Tunnel in May 1996, Western Harbour Crossing in April 1997, Shing Mun Tunnels and Tseung Kwan O Tunnel in October 1997, Tai Lam Tunnel in June 1998 and Lantau Link in July 1998. They allow motorists to pay tolls by driving through designated toll booths without stopping. Since October 1998, the autotoll systems were unified so that a subscriber needs only one tag to use all tunnels and toll roads fitted with the system. In 2003, about 49 per cent of motorists used autotoll when passing through the tunnels and toll roads.

Parking

On-street parking is provided where there is parking demand and traffic conditions permit. At year-end, Hong Kong had about 17 700 metered parking spaces, with electronic parking meter charging in operation mainly between 8 am and midnight from Mondays to Saturdays, and 10 am to 10 pm on Sundays and public holidays. The management and operation of on-street metered parking spaces is contracted out to a private operator.

The Government owns 13 multi-storey carparks which together provide about 7 000 parking spaces. They are operated and managed by two private operators under management contracts with the Government.

Off-street public parking is provided by the Airport Authority at the airport at Chek Lap Kok and by the Housing Department in its housing estates. Park-and-Ride facilities have been operating at the Hong Kong, Kowloon and Tsing Yi Stations of the Airport Express, at Choi Yuen Road near the East Rail Sheung Shui Station, West Rail Kam Sheung Road Station in Yuen Long, and some commercial carparks located near the Olympic Station of the Tung Chung Line and the Hang Hau Station of the Tseung Kwan O Line. Private sector multi-storey and open-air public carparks in commercial/residential buildings and open-air lots provide about 184 500 parking spaces.

Road Safety

In 2003, there were 14 436 traffic accidents that resulted in casualties, including 173 fatal accidents and 2 674 involving serious injury. The number represented an overall decrease of 7.3 per cent compared with the 15 576 accidents in 2002 (162 fatal and 3 118 involving serious injury). In-depth investigations were carried out at 150 traffic accident 'black spots' to identify common accident causes. Remedial measures were recommended at 123 of these locations.

By year-end, 111 signalised road junctions were fitted with red light cameras to deter motorists from disobeying traffic signals and 85 locations on strategic routes were fitted with speed enforcement cameras to deter speeding. Further expansion of the red light camera and speed enforcement camera systems will be considered in 2004.

A legislative amendment to extend the rear seat belt requirement to public light bus passengers was endorsed by the Legislative Council and will come into effect in August 2004.

As part of efforts to promote road safety, an open competition for the Road Safety Vision was launched in November. The objectives were to devise a road safety vision for Hong Kong and to motivate the public towards achieving the common goal of road safety. In addition, a slogan will be selected to illustrate and supplement the Road Safety Vision.

Road safety campaigns continued to play an important role in reducing traffic accidents. The main theme chosen for 2003 was 'Smart Driving'. The message was conveyed through television and radio announcements, printed materials and on the Internet.