| In Search of a Sustainable Transport Development Strategy for Hong Kong by L. H. Wang
香 港 在 短 時 間 內 成 功 地 從 工 業 基 地 轉 型 為 國 際 城 市 ， 實 是 很 多 成 功 因 素 的 結 合 成 果 。 縱 使 現 時 的 交 通 建 設 與 運 輸 管 理 已 獲 國 際 好 評 ， 為 配 合 本 港 的 地 形 轉 變 ， 一 個 具 規 模 的 交 通 系 統 仍 然 是 必 須 的 。 但 地 理 極 限 、 土 地 利 用 政 策 及 與 珠 江 三 角 洲 結 合 等 因 素 ， 都 會 令 近 年 的 交 通 策 略 或 難 全 面 推 行 。 政 府 應 當 從 全 港 的 發 展 策 略 考 慮 ， 維 繫 一 個 有 效 率 的 交 通 系 統 以 輔 助 經 濟 發 展 。
Introduction Hong Kong has succeeded in transforming itself from a pre-industrial settlement to a dynamic global urban centre within a rather short period of time. This obviously is a result of a combination of factors, including a rather sustainable and hardworking labour force. In order to accommodate a massive structural change of both the physical and human landscapes, a series of infrastructure development programmes were introduced over the years, one of which is the rather comprehensive transport system serving as the backbone of the city. Indeed, Hong Kong has created a transport system that commands high respect in the urban world. We have, more or less, incorporated all the major modes of transport into our system, thus creating an interesting and equally productive structure for the smooth functioning of the society. New routes and new modes are being introduced from time to time, in the hope to make the already complicated system more workable. Perhaps, in view of the limited land space and resources that are available to us, and a National Policy of enhancing sustainable development, it appears appropriate now to review our transport development strategies.
The Sustainability Concept and Hong Kong The concept of sustainability in all things including transport can be summarized in the following quote from the World Commission on Environmental and Development in 1987:
Taken into consideration the spatial and temporal contexts of development, and the uniqueness and diversity of the Hong Kong society, a sustainable transport development scenario should be such that its accessibility, efficiency and equity levels so achieved do not and will not compromise the ability of any group of people as well as any area within the city to satisfy their needs now and in the future. In short, a sustainable transport development system allows an equal opportunity for all to commute within an affordable cost and time constraint, now and in the future. Further, the level of spatial and temporal externalities so generated should be kept to its minimum. To meet such a high standard requires the full support of all sectors within and outside the transport sector.
How Good Are We? It is a known fact that our transport service is efficient and the cost of transport is relatively affordable, especially when compared with other major cities in the world. We have over the years established a system that attains a high level of efficiency in its service performance to meet the ever increasing demand of the general public. Geographical constraints of the urban landscape allow the creation of a huge captive ridership to sustain the high level of services of our public transportation system. The robust economy generates a high demand in private transport as well. Limited parking space does to some extent discourage car ownership. In terms of private car ownership per unit of population, we have less than half the number of vehicles of Singapore, and one-third of that of Taiwan. Over 80% of trips in Hong Kong are on public transport. Our fleets are manageably new, although the enforcement of a more stringent environmental measure appears required for further improvement of some vehicles. Notwithstanding the so-called non-intervention policy the Administration has been upholding, the Transport Department in fact rightly adopts a set of rather stringent management guidelines to ensure the smooth operation of our transport services. Perhaps because of the high level of commuting efficiency provided, the general public has chosen to ignore the invisible hand actively moving behind the scene. There is a price to pay, and the price is right in this context.
Difficulties in Transportation Development and Traffic Management One must not assume the provision of an efficient traffic management in Hong Kong is an easy task. There are at least several factors that may not be conducive to the development of a sustainable transport system.
Geographical constraints First, the geographical constraints of the city layout have direct implications for the smooth operation of the traffic system. The narrow and winding street patterns, the crowdedness of an active urban centre, and a mis-match between employment and residence, among others, have all contributed to the complexity of the traffic system. Limited road space per car and the lack of parking facilities ensure congestion and delay as well. The lack of sufficient east-west highways across Kowloon Peninsula and the New Territories generates unnecessary trips to the city centre which deprives the opportunity of other commuters. It also increases traffic and highway maintenance cost. It is, however, to be noted here that the Administration is introducing new highways and rail roads to tackle this problem.
Land use intensification and succession Secondly, the success of Hong Kong as a major commercial centre and financial hub depends to a great extent on the adoption by the Administration of a strong urban centre strategy in urban design. The process of extensive land use intensification and land use succession over the years has created a very impressive urban centre full of vitality and energy. The speed of office block development in the urban area explains vividly the success of such a strong urban centre strategy in promoting confidence in the international investment sector. The backup with efficient communications and other public utilities infrastructure together with a modern work force further ensures the structural transformation process. Such a development process, however, poses a serious challenge to traffic management. Each round of land use intensification and land use succession, which are usually taking place hand in hand, demands a similar round of improvement of transportation infrastructure and upgrading of traffic management services. The improvement of transportation and traffic development in turn induces a further round of urban expansion. Being at the supportive end of the cycle, the Transport Bureau and Transport Department are forced to face with a serious challenge in providing a service that is efficient, equitable and sustainable at the same time. Each round of land use succession implies the outward movement of people to the new towns and the New Territories. Huge investment in transportation infrastructure, such as the mass transit railway, is required to ensure efficient commuting between work place and residence. Areas that are of less significance to such a loop will inevitably be neglected in transportation development planning. Groups of residents that do not constitute part of the active labour force will also be bypassed. In short, the level of transport sustainability gives in to transport efficiency, in meeting the demand of an economy in which its success relies on the continuous upgrading of a strong urban centre. There appears to be a need to strike a balance between sustainability and efficiency here. Such a balance is difficult to come by.
Spatial integration with the Pearl River Delta Thirdly, the emphasis on spatial integration with the Pearl River Delta and the opening up of the New Territories also introduce a new challenge to our transportation development programme. In theory, the outward movement trend is reverse in direction to the initial concept of promoting a strong urban centre strategy. The development in fact provides more room for land use intensification and land use succession in the urban centre as more and more dwellers and commercial activities that do not demand a central location will move away from the high-rent urban centre to the periphery. This demands a heavy investment in transportation facilities in the newly developed areas. With the establishment of Hong Kong into a Special Administrative Region, the transportation linkages between Hong Kong and the Pearl River Delta will be further strengthened. This in turn will encourage a further movement of industrial and manufacturing activities into the interior from Hong Kong. The present strategy of turning Hong Kong into a transportation and transhipment centre supports the idea of continuously expanding our port facilities in the hope to accommodate the ever increasing freight transport from the Mainland. The issue here is an interesting one, as far as transportation sustainability is concerned. Expanding port facilities means the need for a complicated highway system to support the vast number of container trucks and similar vehicles. Increasing freight transport deprives the opportunity of passenger transport, and hence the majority of the general public. The economic gains generated from the freight transportation services may not be sufficient to cover the opportunity cost induced by a reduction of efficiency in passenger transportation. By promoting the international freight transport sector, the Administration may be accused of ignoring the interest of the passenger transport sector.
The Need to Redefine Our Transport Policy Therefore, it appears necessary for us to re-examine our existing transport development and traffic management policies if the aim is to achieve a high level of sustainability in the long run. This, however, has to be considered in conjunction with the overall development strategies of Hong Kong, both in terms of the SAR as a stand-alone entity and as an active member of the Motherland. Sustainability is a yard-stick in development. Notwithstanding this, the end should not be the means, and the means at present and in the near future at least is to ensure we can maintain an efficient transportation system at a reasonable cost to support the needed economic growth.
Dr. L. H. Wang is the Chairman, The Hong Kong Institute for Infrastructure De |