February 22, 2016

The Editor
South China Morning Post

Dear Editor,

I refer to the article titled "South Lantau residents slam scheme to allow more cars" published on SCMP on February 17. It was stated in the article that there was no public consultation on the matter of allowing entry of more cars into South Lantau. This statement did not reflect the truth.

I would like to clarify that the Transport Department (TD) had carried out consultation for the proposal to allow private cars to enter South Lantau for recreational and leisure purposes.

The original proposal was to permit 50 private cars to enter South Lantau on weekdays for recreational and leisure purposes in mid-2015. The TD consulted the Traffic and Transport Committee of Islands District Council, the four Rural Committees in Lantau, the public transport operators in South Lantau, the tourism sector and 36 green groups and the Traffic and Transport Subcommittee of the Lantau Development Advisory Committee (TTSC LanDAC).

The TD received both supporting and opposing views during the consultation process. The parties that supported the proposal agreed that South Lantau should be opened up in a gradual manner to enhance accessibility and proposed that more parking spaces should be provided at the tourist spots. The parties that did not support the proposal were mainly concerned about the impact of the proposal on the natural environment, traffic and road conditions and the sufficiency of parking spaces.

Taking into account the condition and design capacity of roads in South Lantau and parking facilities, the TD considered that the proposal would have minimal impact on the environment and traffic condition. However, having considered the concerns raised by the stakeholders during public consultation, the TD decided to implement the proposal in phases. In the first phase, 25 private cars will be permitted on weekdays starting from February 26 between 8 am and 7 pm. The TD will closely monitor the traffic condition and utilisation of parking spaces in South Lantau upon implementation of the new measure; and will review the timetable for implementing the second phase in due course.

Yours faithfully,

Irene Ho
Assistant Commissioner for Transport / New Territories