PROBLEM STATEMENT: Hong Kong faces severe challenges in sustaining transport development. The population is anticipated to grow by one million people over the next twenty years. With daily ridership exceeding five million passengers and multiple lines running at ninety percent capacity during rush hour, there is insufficient capacity to meet future demand on current Mass Transit Railway (MTR) lines. Although MTR has taken measures to address the supply challenge with the addition of rail lines and through station and technological enhancements, policies must also be introduced to manage demand if Hong Kong is to sustain its

transportation model.

Current Transportation Scenario in Hong Kong .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. -Current policy emphasizes MTR as the backbone of the public transportationsystem in order to alleviate road congestion and reduce roadside emissions.-Consists of 10 commuter lines and 84 stations servicing Hong Kong Island,Kowloon and the New Northwest Territories. -In addition, the Light Rail network services communities at 68 Light Rail stopsin the Northwest New Territories.-Railways currently account for about 400/o of daily public transport ridership.-Current daily ridership exceeds 4.5 million- MTR trains can run at 900/o capacity, especially during peak hours.- 62% of the working population in the New Territories are required tocommute long distances to work in Hong Kong Island, Kowloon or other NewTowns

Land Area Analysis

' s

• Wild lands

• Barren Land "' • Water Bodies '

Mid-year Population of Hong Kong, 2001-2041

&78 6.35 6,87 6.91 ].O)

7.52 ,. 1.71 7.87 7.98

• • •••••••• •••••••••• •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

MTR Current Capacity Map

East Rail Line 100 °/o

• • •••••••••••••••••••Ma On Shan Line 80 °/o : West Rail Line 99 °/o

••••••Tsuen Wan Line 100 °/o : •Kwun Tong Line 94 °/o : • • Tseung Kwan O Line 100.6 °/o

• •••••

• Residential

Commercial : Tung Chung Line 84 °/o Island Line 93 °/o • • •••

••••••••••••••••• Industrial

Institutional

• Open Space

' a

• Transportation 2

• Other Urban or Built-up Land

•Agriculture1

• • • • • • ' .............................................................................. , :.!Clll 2011 2Ull W B 1014 1016 2011 2Ul6 2U:ll 103b 1lJ41

Challenges to Future Rail Expansion - Hong Kong's current population is about 7.3 million

people. - By 2041, the population is expected to grow

by nearly 1 million people. -Population growth and increased

economic activity will place greater strain on the public transportation

system. - Limited available land for

rail expansion: 66 percent of Hong

Kong's land is reserved for

park land.

The Sustainable Mobility Approach

- Policy must place greater emphasis on transportdemand management and accessibility.- Much work is still needed to optimize sustainabletransport modes at local level, including walking andcycling (Non-Motorized Transport).-Travel by bicycle has not been included as an indicator inthe evaluation criteria for transport.- Accessibility remains a problem in the new towns

'

. Jtjj!lt ...... Ea:st Roil Line

Northem�Link .,_ WcotRdl.int

KwuTung . .. ,

*111 l u n g Shui Kiu

<gl)ilili!!!> ;:: Then Mun ....

South E>etenslon

Tung Chung 7C4'll..l West ExtensloQ

i.a,nu� l•h�d

"'31! Ji\!!> I "11'-' south Island L\ne (West)

Oif::SiMIS Gun uShcmhen-H 9 Kon9E1prw&R l l lM

Table 13.3Contrasting Approaches to Transport Planning

Conventional approach Sustainable Mobility approach

Travel as a derived demand Travel as a valued activity as well as a derived demand

Demand based

Motorized transport

Management based

All modes of transport, often in a hierarchy with pedestrian and cyclist at the top

Traffic focus People focus

Street as a road Street as a space

Travel time minimization Travel time reliability

Source: Banister D (2008). The Sustainable Mobility Paradigm.

Hong Kong Rises to The Challenge -To mitigate these challenges, RDS 2014 calls for

several expansion and enhancement projects to the MTR:

- 7 new railway projects to be developed upto 2026

- Upgraded station facilities- Procurement of new trains

- Adoption of new technologyto improve performance,

such as cloud computing, smart

sensors and upgraded

signaling systems

What Does This Mean for Hong Kong?

- Sections of the rail system have been uncomfortablyovercrowded, with passengers unable to board the trainduring the peak period.- Railway breakdowns during the peak period furthercompound the problem.- Sha Tin-Central Link is running over budget and is delayedby at least 6 months due to land use and preservationconcerns over historical structures at former Tai Hom Village.- Accessibility will continue to be a problem, particular forthe new towns.- Inefficient transportation options inhibit economic activityand impede economic growth.

Y. t e ford,- .•

POLICY RECOMMENDATION: We propose that the government should manage demand through policies aimed at reducing ridership and balancing Hong Kong's population density. Our policy proposal is the development of a new Central Business District in the New Territories in order to

shift demand for travel from the MTR to non-motorized transport within the new district.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . , ..••..

CBD Proposal -One proposal to address density is to create a new CBD in theNew Territories-Opposition arguments for developing on NT focus on villagerslivelihoods in the Yuen Long District, and threats to farmland-Suggestions to address this include building on places notcurrently considered before -Apart from this we suggest creating a new CBD on an existingregion ideal for growth -This is meant to use economic development as a driver to mitigatedemand and strain on current MTR transportation

•...• •...•....•....•....•...••....•. . ••.....•...••. . ••...•••. ••...•....••...•.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 1

What will it Take? -Generous financial incentives (including tax concessions and rentalsubsidies) for businesses to relocate from high density populationareas-Concessions to attract mainland businesses-Land development incentives (including reduced propertypremiums and tax concessions) to stimulate private sectorinvestment development-Zoning policies aimed at achieving a proper balance of restaurants, andoffice and residential space, as well as provisions to create openattractive spaces for recreation-Establishing a university presence and an advisory board to coordinateeconomic development endeavors-Civic projects such as art to make the place enjoyable to live

Transportation Development Strategies: -Establishment of feeder service to link to the Kam Sheung RoadMTR station-Local transportation scheme to fully develop bicycle pathsand pedestrian walkways-Partnerships with community leadership andbusinesses that encourage NMT as the primarymode of transportation within thecommunity-Road management plan thatdiscourages use of automobiles,including scaled parking rates andElectronic Road Pricing (ERP)

• •

Citations and acknowledgements

Land use chart: Planning Department of Hong Kong (http://www.pland.gov.hk/pland_en/info_serv/statistic/landu.html) Hong Kong Population: Census & Statistics Department Line congestion data: LCQl 9: MTR carrying capacity and passenger flow management (http://www.info.gov.hk.gia/general/201604/20/P201604200509.htm)Transportation map: MTR plans Sustainable Model Paradigm Banister, D. (2008). The sustainable mobility paradigm. Transport Policy, Vol. 15, (2), Pp. 73-80. Hong Kong Moving Ahead: A Transport Strategy for the Future (2013). Available at: http://www.thb.gov.hk/eng/psp/publications/transport/publications/hk_move_ahead_txt.htm (Accessed on 15 June 2016)

············································································································································································ . .. .. .. .: : . .: . : Location of Shek Kong

•....••...•....•....•....•...••...•. . ••....•...••. •....•.•. ••. . •...••..•....••...•....•...

,

i)l;*ti; ung Shui Kiu

"<llr, Teien Mun

South Extension

-Shenzhen

Northern Link

ll!I6111 Tun;C.ti1.11"9Une

UJ TungChung West Extenslon

;ft (i!>iSlc South Island Line (West)

Lantau bland

- - h:'ti Proposed R2i!way Sd'letne

-Shek Kong is right along the High Speed Rail line to Shenzen-It is also located on a future extension of the MTR along theWest Rail Line

.• • ...• . • . .• ...• .•. •. . • ....• ...• ....• ...•........• ...• ....• . . •...• ...• .• • . • . •...•. •....•..••...... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Why another CBD? -Over 50% of Hong Kong's population lives in the New Territories-The majority of that population needs to commute elsewhere forwork. If even 10%* of that population could live, work and recreatein the same community space, utilizing Non-Motorized Transport(NMT) modes, daily ridership on the MRT could be reduced byaround 300,000 people. A CBD in the New Territories is thesolution to achieve that outcome.*Hypothetical scenario-A CBD in Shek Kong, with its enviable location, promisesopportunity for economic development. Proximity to Shenzen andaccess to High Speed Rail will establish Shek Kong as a new hubfor business, leisure and high-quality living in Hong Kong

Costs -Very long term and requires a huge investment on

developing CBD

Transportation map: MTR plans Sustainable Model Paradigm

-Incentives to move thereBenefits

-A lot of space to grow a more self-containedCBD that promotes sustainable mobility

-Reduces demand on MTR-Would manage demand and strain

on current transit -Multiple opportunities for

economic development

West Kowloon Image: WiNG, Wikimedia Commons Header on second poster: http://cityillustration.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/hong-kong-skyline-sketch.jpg West Kowloon Image: WiNG, Wikimedia Commons Header on second poster: http://cityillustration.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/hong-kong-skyline-sketch.jpg Ma M., Law R. & Chen V. (2013), Actively Travelling to Sustainable Mobility, The Second Chief Executive of Hong Kong SAR: Evaluating the Tsang Years 2005. Hong Kong: City University of Hong Kong Press LIFE OF THE CITY, SUSTAINABILITY REPORT 2014, (2015). Available at: http://www.mtr.com.hk/en/corporate/sustainabi1ity/2014rpt/pdf/mtrfull2014.pdf (Accessed on 15 June 2016) Gonda, T. (2010), Towards a Sustainable Urban Transport System: An Analysis of the Epistemology and Planning Policy Direction for Non-Motorized Transport in Ethiopian Cities, The IUP Journal of Infrastructure, Vol. VIII, No. 3, pp. 58-78.