Special traffic and transport arrangements for EAG events on December 10
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The Transport Department (TD) reminded the public that special traffic and transport arrangements would be implemented in Sha Tin, Tseung Kwan O and Causeway Bay tomorrow (December 10) to facilitate the holding of Hong Kong 2009 East Asian Games (EAG) events.
For the holding of the EAG cycling road races, the Kowloon bound carriageway of Tsing Sha Highway will be designated as the race route and temporarily closed to all vehicular traffic from 5am to 6pm. The New Territories bound carriageway will remain in operation.
During the closure of the Kowloon bound carriageway of Tsing Sha Highway, motorists heading for Kowloon will have to divert via Lion Rock Tunnel and Tai Po Road to Kowloon Central or Kowloon West, or they can make use of Shing Mun Tunnel to Kwai Chung and Tsuen Wan areas. Motorists heading for Kowloon East may travel via Tate's Cairn Tunnel. It is anticipated that the traffic in Sha Tin district will be very busy and more congested than usual during morning peak hours on that day. Traffic queues may appear earlier than normal. Due to the road closure, KMB route No 373A (Wan Chai bound) and residents' service route No 88R (Central bound) will be diverted. The locations of bus stops remain unchanged.
To facilitate the holding of athletics road races (20km Race Walk) in Tseung Kwan O, the section of Po Hong Road southbound between Po Shun Road and Po Yap Road, and the section of Po Yap Road eastbound between Po Hong Road and Wan Po Road will be temporarily closed to all vehicular traffic from 9am to 3pm. Nine franchised bus routes and two green minibus routes operating via the abovementioned road sections will be diverted.
As for the rowing events in Sha Tin Shing Mun River Channel, section of cycle track and footpath along the western riverside of Shing Mun River Channel between Dragon Bridge and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Stables as well as one of the footbridges connecting the Hong Kong Jockey Club Stables and A Kung Kok will continue be closed and designated as part of the competition venue from 7am to 6pm until December 11, and from 7am to 2pm on December 12.
During the closure of the cycle track, footpath and footbridge, the other footbridge connecting the Hong Kong Jockey Club Stables and A Kung Kok will remain open. Cyclists and pedestrians travelling between Tai Po and Sha Tin will have to divert via this footbridge and the eastern riverside of Shing Mun River Channel. To ensure safety, cyclists are required to dismount upon entering/leaving the concerned footbridge. Appropriate traffic signs will be provided on site to guide the cyclists and pedestrians.
On the island side, special traffic and transport arrangements will be implemented from about 3pm at the Hong Kong Stadium and its vicinity to facilitate the arrival of spectators of the football matches. Caroline Hill Road and Eastern Hospital Road will be re-routed into one-way anti-clockwise direction, and will subsequently be closed to all vehicular traffic from about 9.35pm to facilitate crowd dispersal. Meanwhile, 14 bus routes and three green minibus (GMB) routes operating in the vicinity will be diverted. Some of the bus stops and GMB stops along Leighton Road will also be suspended. A special bus route No 117R will be operated from Hong Kong Stadium to Mong Kok during the dispersal phase in the evening.
The Transport Department anticipated that the traffic in Sha Tin district, such as Lion Rock Tunnel, Shing Mun Tunnels, Tate's Cairn Tunnel, Tai Po Road, Tai Wai, Hung Mui Kuk Road, Che Kung Miu Road, and in the vicinity of Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground, Po Lam and Hang Hau areas would be very busy and more congested than normal during the event periods of EAG cycling road races on Tsing Sha Highway and athletics road race in Tseung Kwan O. Traffic queues may appear earlier than normal. Members of the public are advised to advance their departure time and allow more travelling time to cater for unexpected delay. They are also advised to make use of public transport as far as possible.
Motorists should avoid driving to these areas. They should exercise tolerance and patience in case of traffic congestion, and follow the instructions of the Police.
Passengers of public transport services are advised to watch out the arrangements of route diversions and relocation of stops. Notices will be displayed by public transport operators to advise passengers of the temporary public transport arrangements.
Depending on the prevailing circumstances, other ad-hoc traffic control measures and public transport arrangements, including further closure of road, cycle track and footpath, traffic diversions, alterations and suspension of public transport services, may be adopted with short notice. The Transport Department appealed to the public for their understanding and support for all the arrangements made as well as co-operation with the frontline police officers on site. The Department's Emergency Transport Co-ordination Centre will closely monitor the traffic and transport situations, and will implement contingency plans when necessary.
Members of the public are advised to watch for announcements by the TD and the police, and the latest traffic and transport news broadcast through radio and television channels. They may also browse the TD website (www.td.gov.hk) or call the department's Hotline 1834567 or 1823 Call Centre for details.
Ends/Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Issued at HKT 15:20
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