MACAU BUSINESS
terminals in the city, relieving the pressure on land traffic in the northern district. Despite forewarnings and
suggestions from society about potential traffic problems in Areia Preta, officials have seemed reluctant to take action. In a response to enquiries from the Legislative Assembly earlier this year, the Transport Bureau said at the time: ‘[The Bureau] will conduct a study about the traffic planning of Rotunda da Amizade in accordance with the arrangements of HZMB, as well as the development of the Areia Preta district and the newly reclaimed plot A.’ According to the short-term solutions unveiled in October
days before the opening of the HZMB, the number of traffic lanes from Pérola Oriental in Areia Preta to Amizade Bridge will increase to three from two, while the efficiency of traffic lights from the Border Gate to Amizade Bridge will also be improved to enhance traffic flow. For long-term solutions, the Bureau will conduct a 120-day study to arrive at more concrete measures, but does not rule out the possibility of using the land plot, where luxury project Pearl Horizon was once being built, for constructing facilities to relieve traffic pressure on the district. The government has stated that the traffic pressure in the initial stage of the HZMB ‘will not be huge’, estimating that about 4,000 vehicles will enter the city every day.
Diverting traffic
Cheang Ka Hou, a member of the government-appointed Traffic Consultative Committee, also believes there will be no “disastrous effects” upon the city’s traffic in the near future, given the expected limited traffic flow of the HZMB in the initial stage. But he is worried that the opening of HMZB will encourage more residents using the border terminals in the northern district, worsening traffic in the area. Besides the Border Gate, residents can now also directly walk to the Zhuhai side via the Macau and Zhuhai Ports of HZMB. “The government should think about measures to divert people from using the Border Gate to the Lotus Border Terminal in Hengqin,” he continued. “For instance, the
How effective will the bridge be?
T
Administration could encourage more travellers on package tours to enter and leave the city via the Lotus terminal as only about 10 per cent of package tour visitors use it at the moment.” Government figures reveal that
here has not been any updated official forecast on the volume of traffic expected to use the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau Bridge besides two consultancy reports released by the Hong Kong Government. According to a 2016 consultant study
nearly 11.73 million visitors entered the city via the Border Gate in the first eight months of this year, up 11.4 per cent year-on-year, accounting for 54.9 per cent of total visitors, while only 1.95 million visitors, or 8.4 per cent of the total, used the Lotus terminal in the same period. Local think tank Collective Wisdom Policy Centre Vice
engaged by the three sides, the daily traffic volume of the bridge is estimated to be 29,100 vehicles and 126,000 passengers in 2030, and 42,000 vehicles and 175,000 passengers in 2037. The latest forecast was lower than the figures flagged by another consultancy report in 2008, which forecast daily traffic of 33,100 vehicles and 171,800 passengers in 2030. The Hong Kong Government explained at the time that the lower forecast was due to the competition for passengers from the Shenzhen- Zhongshan Bridge, which is expected to become operational by 2024, and the development of railways in Mainland China.
President Chan Ka Leong agrees that the government has to collaborate with travel agencies to ensure more package tours enter and leave the city via the Cotai terminal. The authorities could also work hand-in-hand with gaming operators to encourage their staff living across the border to use the Lotus terminal rather than the Border Gate to relieve traffic pressure in the northern district. As the government could build more flyovers or
underground tunnels to divert the traffic in Areia Preta as mid-term measures, Mr. Chan believes more land reclamation is the long-term solution for the area’s traffic problems. “The Administration could reclaim a bit more land in the
area between the Border Gate and Pérola Oriental to enhance the road surface in the district, which could also resolve the bad sea smell problem that has plagued the area for some time,” he proposed.
22 DECEMBER 2018
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