Minutes of the 2nd Special Meeting of the Traffic and Transport Committee (2020-2021) of the District Council

Date : 10 July 2020 (Friday) Time : 9:35 a.m. Venue : Council (TMDC) Conference Room

Present Time of Arrival Time of Departure Mr POON Chi-kin (Chairman) TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr WONG Tak-yuen (Vice-chairman) TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Ms CHAN Shu-ying, Josephine TMDC Chairman 9:39 a.m. End of meeting Mr WONG Tan-ching TMDC Vice-chairman 9:59 a.m. End of meeting Ms KONG Fung-yi TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. 12:23 p.m. Mr CHAN Yau-hoi, BBS, MH, JP TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Ms WONG Lai-sheung, Catherine TMDC Member 9:38 a.m. End of meeting Ms HO Hang-mui TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr LAM Chung-hoi TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Ms CHU Shun-nga, Beatrice TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr YEUNG Chi-hang TMDC Member 10:47 a.m. End of meeting Mr YAN Siu-nam TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr MO Kwan-tai, Michael TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr HO Kwok-ho TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr LAM Kin-cheung TMDC Member 9:37 a.m. 11:44 a.m. Mr CHOW Kai-lim TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr MA Kee TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr CHEUNG Ho-sum TMDC Member 10:05 a.m. 11:49 a.m. Mr CHEUNG Kam-hung, Kenneth TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr WONG Hung-ming TMDC Member 9:38 a.m. End of meeting Mr TSANG Kam-wing TMDC Member 11:03 a.m. End of meeting Mr YAN Pui-lam TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr LAI Chun-wing, Alfred TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. 11:38 a.m. Ms LAI Ka-man TMDC Member 9:35 a.m. End of meeting Mr CHAU Man Chun, Tony Executive Officer (District Council) 2, Tuen Mun District (Secretary) Office, Home Affairs Department

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By Invitation Miss YU Wing Sze, Natalie Senior Transport Officer / Bus / Lantau, Transport Department

Miss LEUNG Ka Man, Eunice Transport Officer / Bus / Lantau, Transport Department

Mr. Gary LEUNG Head of Operational Planning Department, The Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd

Ms. Betsy LEUNG Manager, Public Affairs, Transport Planning and Public Affairs, The Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd

Mr. Kelvin YEUNG Division Manager, Operations ( West), The Kowloon Motor Bus Co. (1933) Ltd

Mr. Andy CHEUNG Manager, Operations, Long Win Bus Company Limited

Mr. LAW Yiu-wah, Rayson Senior Officer, Planning and Development, Long Win Bus Company Limited

Mr. WONG Kai Ming, Edmond Senior Operations Officer, Citybus

In Attendance

Miss LEUNG Chue Kay, Koronis Assistant District Officer (Tuen Mun)2, Home Affairs Department Mr. YEUNG Lok Man, Icarus Senior Transport Officer /Tuen Mun 1, Transport Department

Ms. TSE Sau Ching, Cammy Senior Transport Officer/Tuen Mun 2, Transport Department

Absent Mr LEE Ka-wai TMDC Member Mr LAM Ming-yan TMDC Member Mr LEUNG Ho-man TMDC Member Mr. TSANG Chun-hing TMDC Member Mr LO Chun-yu TMDC Member

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Opening Remarks The Chairman welcomed all to the 2nd special meeting of the Traffic and Transport Committee (“TTC”) (2020-2021).

2. The Chairman continued to say that the meeting should not be too long in order to reduce the time of crowd gathering in a closed space. In this connection, he reminded all to speak concisely and precisely and avoid repeating the points mentioned.

3. The Chairman reminded Members that any Member who was aware of a personal interest in a discussion item should declare the interest before the discussion. He would, in accordance with Order 38 (12) of the TMDC Standing Orders (“Standing Orders”), decide whether the Member who had declared the interest might speak or vote on the matter, might remain in the meeting as an observer, or should withdraw from the meeting. All cases of declaration of interests would be recorded in the minutes of the meeting.

II. Absence from Meeting 4. The Secretariat had received no application from Members for leave of absence.

III. Matters Arising (A) Bus Route Diversion Arrangements upon Commissioning of Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link (Northern Connection) (TTC Paper No. 46/2020) 5. The Chairman welcomed Miss YU Wing-sze, Natalie, Senior Traffic Officer/Bus/Lantau and Miss LEUNG Ka-man, Eunice, Transport Officer/Bus/Lantau of the Transport Department (“TD”), Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin, Head, Transport Planning, Mr. Kelvin YEUNG, Division Manager, Operations (New Territories West) and Ms. Betsy LEUNG, Manager, Public Affairs of the Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited (“KMB”), Mr. CHEUNG KIU-kwong, Manager (Operations) and Mr. LAW Yiu-wah, Rayson, Senior Officer (Planning and Development) of the Long Win Bus Company Limited and Mr. WONG Kai-ming, Senior Operations Officer of the Citybus Limited (“Citybus”) to the meeting.

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6. Miss Natalie YU of the TD briefed on the captioned paper with PowerPoint presentation (See Annex I).

7. The Chairman said that the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link (Northern Connection) (“LINK”) would be commissioned soon so he requested the TD to explain how the department would follow up on the views that Members had provided on the captioned paper. Moreover, there was ample time for the meeting today so he would invite department representatives to provide responses right after each Member had spoken so that they could respond to Members’ enquiries more accurately.

8. A Member said that her political party had repeatedly requested to form a task force for the collection of public opinions to work out a Bus Route Planning Programme (“BRPP”) in line with public opinions for invitation to public tender. However, she was dissatisfied that the TD had ignored the above suggestion and discussed the route adjustment plan with the Long Win directly. She hoped that the department would accept Members’ views widely. She further suggested the arrangement of more bus routes to pass through the bus interchange of the LINK. She pointed out that it was not reasonable that buses of Routes “A” and “E” had different magnitude of fare reduction. She opined that buses of Route “E” should have fare cut to about $8. She continued to say that as far as the franchised bus routes after the commissioning of the LINK were concerned, the TD should put them to open tender and conduct wide consultation again. Besides, she showed concern about the overloaded vehicular flow on the currently and was worried that it would cause inconvenience to the passengers who went to work at the airport after the bus route diversion.

9. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that upon completion of a new facility, the department would review the bus routes in the district concerned and prepare the bus route diversion arrangements for proper use of the new road facility and provision of more efficient bus services to passengers as a usual practice. Currently, the Long Win provided franchised bus services between the New Territories and the North Lantau. Having regard to the commissioning of the LINK, the TD would use this new road facility for adjustment and enhancement of the current franchised bus services and

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Action networks to increase their operational efficiency and provide more passengers with direct bus services to and from the North Lantau and avoid an overlap in bus services and resources. On the suggestion for the arrangements of more bus routes to pass through the interchange at the entrance/exit of the LINK, the department had considered several factors when working out the arrangements ( including the distance to be saved, impact on the fares and the interchange arrangements at the entrance/exit of the LINK and the Lantau LINK Toll Plaza). It decided to arrange the airport bus routes in Tuen Mun, Yuen Long and the North District to change to pass through the LINK in the first instance. As far as other bus routes to and from the urban areas were concerned, it would be more direct for them to pass through the Tuen Mun Road than the LINK. Therefore, the department had no plan to arrange those bus routes to change to pass through the LINK for the time being. There would be a review on the arrangements concerned with the franchised bus companies in due course in the future. She continued to say that the fares of the franchised bus companies were determined in accordance with to the relevant fare scales. Different franchised bus companies would have their own fare scales to work out the maximum fare to be charged according to the bus route group and their distance. The franchised bus companies had examined the situation of the routes passing through the LINK and determined the single fare of the routes tentatively having regard to the routes of the diversion arrangements in the paper. The actual fares would depend on the on-site test runs. When approving the application for the route diversion, the TD would ensure the fares of the routes concerned could comply with the provisions of the fare scales and it would encourage the franchised bus companies to provide more fare concessions in so far as operational and financial situation permitted. Moreover, according to the latest forecast on traffic flow, there would not be significant impact on the traffic within the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK. According to the latest study by the consultancy firm, congestion at the major road sections (including the Tuen Mun Road – Town Centre Section, and the link to Wong Chu Road) which were busier in the Tuen Mun District could still be maintained at the controllable level after the commissioning of the LINK until 2026. The TD would closely monitor the traffic demands and road network changes in the Tuen Mun District and work out corresponding traffic management measures in due course, e.g. carrying out junction widening works, change of traffic light control and implementation of traffic diversion measures, etc., targeted at

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10. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that the company would provide interchange concessions at the bus interchange of the LINK with the concession details similar with those offered at the Lantau Link Toll Plaza Interchange.

11. A Member said that Route No. A 33X would pass through the section of Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road near the Eldo Court but there was serious traffic congestion at the road section concerned. Passengers needed to board the bus in the middle of the road so it was very dangerous to the passengers who carried luggage. In this regard, she suggested that Route No. A33X should continue to travel along the Road after departing from the Prime View Garden. Then it would enter Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road via Pui To Road while the residents of the Eldo Court could walk to the V City and take the bus there. She opined that this could avoid the congestion in Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road and provide convenience to more passengers taking the bus. Besides, she said that the bus was very crowded when Route A34 reached Leung King so she suggested the launch of a new route departing from the to pick up the passengers in the vicinity of Leung King. She continued to say that Routes No. N30 and N30P could not provide services between 1 and 2 a.m. so she suggested that there should be two more departures for Route No. N30P to provide services in the above time slots.

12. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that residents in the did not have direct bus service to the Lantau Island currently. Therefore, Route No. A33X would pass through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road between the - San Hui Section and the Pui To Section to provide convenience to the residents in the vicinity of San Hui to take the bus under the new road diversion arrangements. When considering the route concerned of Route No. A33X, the department had considered that there would be fewer traffic lights for the bus to pass through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road than the Castle Peak Road - San Hui Section near Ho Fook Tong. Therefore, Route No. A33X was arranged to pass through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road. She continued to say that Route No. A34 would take the routing of Route A33X in the Tuen Mun West in the past. As there were over half of the passengers of Route No. A33X

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Action boarding the bus in the vicinity of the Tuen Mun town centre and the Goodview Garden and there was higher frequency of Route No. A34 in peak hours than Route No. A33X currently, the department believed that Route No. A34 could meet the passenger demands in the vicinity of the Tuen Mun West . The TD would pay close attention to the passenger demands after the implementation of the new arrangement and it would review the service arrangements with the bus company if needed. Moreover, on Member’s concern about the service in the time slots at late night, Routes Nos. NA36 and NA37 in the Yuen Long District would also pass through the Tuen Mun Road to pick up the passengers in the vicinity of the Tuen Mun Road under the road diversion arrangements.

13. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the company would study the best routing of No. A33X again. Besides, on Member’s concern about the overcrowdedness in Route No. A34, the KMB would allocate some stand-by buses at the beginning of the commissioning of the route so that there would be special departures from the en-route stops if needed to serve the passengers in the Tuen Mun West. If the passenger volume of the special departures above was steady, the KMB would consider to regularise the departure concerned. He continued to say that the fares of Routes “NA” in the Tuen Mun District would be the same as Route “N” after the diversion so it was expected that some passengers would change to take Routes “NA”.

14. A Member said that there was a special departure of Route No. A33X from Leung King currently but it could not meet the passenger demands. She was worried that passengers could stand only in the bus after Route No. A34 served the Tuen Mun West instead. She also queried that the fare of Route No. E33 had exceeded the provision of the fare scale. It was not fair as the fare increase on the scale would reduce according to the travel distance. She continued to say that many routes which departed from other districts would travel to and from the LINK via the Tuen Mun District. Therefore, she suggested that the routes concerned should provide stops in the Tuen Mun District to facilitate residents going to and from other districts. Besides, she requested the Long Win to allow passengers to take the airport routes by paying the “fare difference”.

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15. The Chairman added that he had driven along the routing of Route No. A34 earlier and found that it would take 40 minutes without stopping from to the entrance of the LINK.

16. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that on Member’s concern about the passenger volume of Route No. A34, the department would arrange an on-site survey after the passenger volume had stabilised and it would follow up with the Long Win if needed. She continued to say that the captioned arrangement could save the distance along the Lantau Link and the North Lantau Road through the diversion of the bus routes to and from the North Lantau via the LINK. When planning the routes, the department wanted to expand the coverage of the route in the Tuen Mun District so that more passengers could take the buses to the North Lantau directly. As far as the fare of Route No. E33 was concerned, the department would ensure that the new fare could comply with the provisions of the fare scale when the Long Win lodged an application for the revision on the schedule of service of the route concerned. On the arrangements of the provision of stops for the external routes in the Tuen Mun District, the department initially planned to provide stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes No. A36 and A37. The two routes above would increase frequency to meet the passenger demands that would increase as expected. The department had no plan to provide stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes No. A43 and A44 for the time being. She further pointed out that the arrangements on the interchange concessions at the bus interchange would be similar with those at the Lantau Link Toll Plaza Bus Interchange and the bus companies would provide the corresponding interchange concessions.

17. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that the interchange concessions at the bus interchange of the LINK would be similar with those offered at the Lantau Link Toll Plaza Bus Interchange. The passengers could interchange other routes by paying the “fare difference”.

18. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the final arrangements on the provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes Nos. A36, A37, A43 and A44 would need approval from the TD.

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19. The Chairman enquired whether the bus company would refund the price difference if the passengers interchanged the cheaper Routes “E” from the more expensive Routes “A”.

20. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that the interchange concessions of each route were different, depending on the individual interchange combination for the details of the arrangements concerned.

21. A Member said that there was often traffic congestion at the Castle Peak Road -Siu Hong Section apart from the vicinity of Wong Chu Road, Lung Mun Road and Lung Fu Road. She was worried that the congestion at the above road section would worsen after the implementation of the captioned plan. Therefore, she requested the department to explain whether there would be traffic impact assessment conducted on the commissioning of the LINK. She also requested the arrangement of Route No. A33 to pass through Road. She continued to say that buses of Routes “E” would pass through the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange in the past but passengers could take the buses of Routes “A” at the interchange only after the implementation of the captioned plan. Therefore, she requested that passengers should pay the fare for Routes “E” when interchanging buses of Routes “E” from Routes “A”. Besides, she requested the TD to provide a response to the late night airport bus service along the Castle Peak Road and its frequency in the non-peak hours.

22. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that she would pass Member’s request for the specific data to the division concerned to follow up. She continued to say that the passengers in the vicinity of So Kwun Wat could take the KMB Route No. 252 to the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange and change Route No. A33 to the vicinity of the North Lantau under the road diversion arrangements. However, the department noticed that the intake of a residential development would commence in August and it was expected that there would be two other property developments completed at the beginning of 2021. The TD would play close attention to the passenger demands in the vicinity of So Kwun Wat after the implementation of the new arrangements and would review the feasibility of the arrangements on service improvements with the bus companies in due

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Action course. On the interchange concessions, currently the KMB and the Long Win would provide interchange concessions at the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange. After the commissioning of the LINK, passengers in the vicinity of So Kwun Wat who took the KMB routes and interchanged Route No. A33 to the North Lantau would pay the similar fares currently in force. Besides, the passenger volume in the peak hours was higher so the TD would work out the frequency in the peak hours first so that the bus companies would prepare sufficient number of buses for the operation of the routes. As far as the frequency in other time slots, the bus companies could not decide on the schedule of service until the implementation of the routes. Moreover, the residents along the Castle Peak Road in the Tuen Mun East could take the Citybus Route No. N962 to Hoi Wing Road at late night and then interchange Routes No. N30 or NA33 in the Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road to go to the North Lantau under the road diversion arrangements.

23. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that the company noticed that there would be intake of new property developments in the coming years in the vicinity of So Kwun Wat. It would maintain contacts with the TD and continue to review the bus services in the area.

24. The Chairman said that Members and residents were dissatisfied with the TD representative who always said that there would be no response to some Members’ enquiries until the commissioning of the LINK or the implementation of the captioned plan.

25. A Member said that there was often traffic congestion at the section of Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road near the Eldo Court so he agreed with other Members that Route No. A33X should not pass through the above road section. He also showed concern about the congestion on the Tuen Mun Road, which would be worsened after the implementation of the captioned plan. Besides, he suggested launching two special routes for Route No. A34 with one departing from Hung Shui Kiu without passing through the vicinity of Leung King, Tin King and Kin Sang while the other departing from Yan Tin to serve the passengers in the vicinity of Leung King, Tin King and Kin Sang. He continued to say that there would not be any bus routes going to the Lantau

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Action Link Toll Plaza Bus Interchange after the implementation of the captioned plan. Therefore, it would cause inconvenience to the residents who needed to change buses at the interchange to go to work at the Disneyland. He requested the TD to propose a solution.

26. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the overall service area of the buses of Routes “A” and “E” would be expanded and the frequency of Routes “A” would be increased after the implementation of the captioned arrangements. The department would understand more about the travel mode of the passengers through on-site surveys after the implementation of the arrangements concerned and would discuss the feasibility of service improvements with the bus companies if needed. She continued to say that passengers who went to the Disneyland could take Route No. A33X to the - Zhuhai – Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port and interchange Route No. 5B or take Routes “E” to the Tung Chung town centre and interchange railway in the morning peak hours.

27. The Chairman pointed out that Tuen Mun residents did not need to take the MTR to get to the Disneyland currently so the residents’ transportation options were cut instead after implementation of the captioned plan.

28. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department noted Member’s views and would pay attention to the passenger demands for going to the Disneyland after the implementation of the road diversion plan. It would review the feasibility of service improvements with the bus companies in due course.

29. A Member said that the captioned plan would have serious impact on the traffic on Wong Chu Road and the Tuen Mun residents. He pointed out that there would be totally over 90 buses which departed from the Yuen Long District and the North District would pass through the Tuen Mun District to the LINK in the future without benefiting the Tuen Mun residents. On the other hand, the Member suggested that the routes concerned should pass through the Castle Peak Road and So Kwun Wat and the routing of Routes No. A33 and A38 should be improved. However, the TD turned a deaf ear to it so he was dissatisfied with the captioned plan. He further suggested that the routing

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Action of No. A38 should be changed to serve the So Kwun Wat residents and Citybus No. 962 series should be arranged to pass through the LINK in the peak hours. He continued to say that the vehicular flow entering Wong Chu Road from the Tuen Mun Road had increased 37.1% while that going to Tuen Hing Road from Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road and Pui To Road had increased 16.4% from 2017 to 2018. Therefore, he opined that the routing of No. A33X would have serious impact on the traffic within the area in the future.

30. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the LINK was located in the Tuen Mun District so the vehicles which went to the LINK would inevitably use the roads in the Tuen Mun District. In this connection, the department initially planned the provision of stops on the Tuen Mun Road for the buses which departed from Yuen Long to facilitate the residents nearby. Moreover, if the routes in Yuen Long and the North District could not pass through the LINK, options at the LINK Interchange would be very limited and the interchange could not be used effectively to achieve the aim of facilitating the passengers interchanging buses to different destinations in the North Lantau. She continued to say that franchised buses were large passenger carriers and there were relatively limited number of buses travelling on the roads. When passengers used public transport service, the road traffic on the roads could be reduced relatively. The TD noted Member’s suggestions on the revised routing of the No. A38 and it would study its feasibility.

31. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the company would consider to use the LINK as an alternative route to the urban areas if there was serious congestion on the Tuen Mun Road.

32. Mr. WONG Kai-ming of the Citybus said that passing through the LINK would lengthen the travel distance and affect the travel time so the Citybus had not planned to change Route No. 962 series to pass through the LINK. It would make a review after the commissioning of the LINK.

33. A Member enquired about the contingency plan when there were incidents which happened at the section of Wong Chu Road turning to Lung Fu Road, the fare of

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Action taking the routes which departed from other districts in Tuen Mun and whether there would be refund of the price difference when the passengers interchanged cheaper routes from more expensive routes. He pointed out that the representatives of the TD and the bus companies had said the routing of some routes would need further study so he enquired whether the TMDC would be consulted again after completion of the study.

34. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the fare of the routes which departed from Yuen Long was tentatively determined at $18.9. The department had always encouraged bus companies to provide fare concessions to passengers in so far as operational and financial conditions permitted. As the department was still listening to the views on the routes concerned, the department would explore with the bus companies further if needed after collecting the views. On the interchange concessions, the Long Win would provide further responses later. Besides, the bus route diversion arrangements after the commissioning of the LINK would involve many districts so the department would collect views first and then report to the TMDC if needed.

35. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the company intended to provide two-way sectional fare for the routes which departed from Yuen Long but the final arrangements would need approval from the TD. On the arrangement for the provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for the routes which departed from the North District, response needed to be provided by the TD. He continued to say that passengers could interchange Routes “E” from Routes “A” free of charge currently and the feasibility of the refund of the price difference would need further study.

36. The Chairman said the TD representative had expressed that it would collect views from different district councils on the captioned plan first and it would conduct another consultation if needed. He said that the TTC was the major authority expressing public opinions on the traffic affairs within and outside the Tuen Mun district so he opined that what the TD did was not acceptable. He requested the TD to consult the TMDC again if there were any revisions of the captioned plan. Moreover, he said that passengers had paid the fare for Routes “A” when interchanging Routes “E” from Routes “A” so the claim that the interchange was “free of charge” was not well-founded.

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37. A Member said that it was very inconvenient for the So Kwun Wat residents to take another bus to the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange first for changing Route No. A33. Therefore, he requested that the terminus of Route No. A33 should be provided at So Kwun Wat. He continued to say that there were many traffic lights on the roads to Yuen Long in the Tuen Mun District and there would be traffic congestion easily so he requested the TD for improvements. Besides, there would not be any late night airport bus service along the Castle Peak Road after the implementation of the captioned plan. Therefore, he requested the TD to consider to keep one late night route which would take the Lantau Link. He further suggested that Route No. A38 should be extended to the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange and there should be provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes No. E36 and E37.

38. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that on the provision of traffic lights about which Member showed concern, she would pass it to the engineer of the department to follow up. She continued to say that the terminus of Route No. A33 would be provided at the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange (Kowloon bound). As So Kwun Wat was situated ahead of the Tuen Mun Road Bus Interchange, the department needed to examine the impact on the passengers after the provision of the terminus of Route No. A33 at So Kwun Wat. Besides, Tuen Mun East residents could take Routes No. N260 or N962 to the Tuen Mun town centre for interchanging Routes No. N30 or NA33 for the North Lantau in the late night. The TD also noted Member’s view on the revised routing of No. A38 and would study its feasibility. The department initially planned to arrange the provision of stops on the Tuen Mun Road for Routes No. E36 and E37.

39. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that if there was ample space for the terminus facility at So Kwun Wat, the company could consider the provision of the terminus of Route No. A33 at that location.

40. A Member said that other vehicles would go to the LINK via the Tuen Mun District apart from buses. Therefore, he enquired the TD whether it had estimated the newly increased vehicular flow in the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK. He continued to say that the captioned plan could increase the airport bus

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Action service from the rural area of Tuen Mun so the residents in the area generally welcomed the plan concerned. Moreover, he suggested that the arrangements on the bus route diversion in different districts should be implemented in phases after the commissioning of the LINK and that the diversion plan for each district should be implemented at an interval of two weeks.

41. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that she would pass the request for the estimate of vehicular flow to the division concerned to follow up. She continued to say that the bus routes in the Yuen Long District would pass through the Tuen Mun Road. If the route diversion arrangements could not be implemented once and for all, there would be no coverage of bus services of Routes “A” and “E” for the residents along the Tuen Mun Road. Besides, if the routes in Yuen Long and the North District could not pass through the LINK, options at the interchange of the LINK would be very limited and the interchange could not be used effectively to achieve the aim of facilitating the passengers interchanging buses to different locations in the North Lantau.

42. The Chairman said that on the response from the TD representative, the Member who just spoke only suggested that implementation of the diversion of the bus routes in other districts should be postponed for two weeks to avoid causing serious impact on the vehicular flow in the Tuen Mun District.

43. A Member said that the captioned paper did not set out the estimated travel time of the routes and he requested the TD to provide supplementary information concerned. He continued to say that there were many stops for Routes No. E33P and A34 and he was worried that it was difficult for the passengers in the downstream stops to board the buses. Therefore, he suggested that there should be provision of special departures in the peak hours to pick up passengers. Besides, he suggested the provision of a direct route from the Tuen Mun Pier to the airport for the passengers to change the route and the number of buses which travelled in the Tuen Mun District should be reduced.

44. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department noted Member’s views on the content of the paper. She continued to say that the journey and the coverage of

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Action Route No. E33P after diversion was more or less the same with the current routing. However, the diversion to the LINK could save the distance significantly when compared with the trip on the North Lantau Highway. Route No. A34 had a similar routing with Route No. A33X in the Tuen Mun West. Although Route No. A34 would pass through the vicinity of Hung Shui Kiu and , it would not pass through such areas as Fu Tai and Tuen Mun town centre. It was believed that it would have similar travel time with Route No. A33X. On the suggestion for the provision of special departure, the bus company also mentioned the allocation of stand-by buses and it would launch special departures depending on the passenger volume. Moreover, passengers could take Route No. A33X in the vicinity of the Tuen Mun Pier to go to the airport under the route arrangements. 45. The Chairman said he believed that what Member really meant was to enquire TD whether there would be provision of direct routes with fewer stops. Tuen Mun Pier was an example only.

46. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department would study Member’s views.

47. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the KMB would allocate some stand-by buses so that there would be special departures at the en-route stops to pick up passengers if needed at the beginning of the commissioning of the LINK. If the passenger volume of the above special departures was stable, the KMB would consider to regularise the departures concerned. He continued to say that the company would also consider to launch direct departures to go to the airport at the or the Tuen Mun town centre depending on the passenger demands.

48. A Member queried whether the routes which departed from the North District needed to pass through Wong Chu Road and the LINK to go to the airport. He also enquired the TD and the KMB whether it would be more efficient to use the original route and there was less chance of traffic congestion. He continued to say that the bus stops along the Tuen Mun Road were very crowded currently so he was worried that there would be “back flow” after the implementation of the captioned plan and he requested the department concerned to provide response.

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49. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department was listening to the views of the North District Council on the bus route diversion arrangements after the commissioning the LINK and it would consider the views of that district together. As far as the loading of the bus stops was concerned, the department initially planned that there would be two en-route stops provided on the Tuen Mun Road for the routes which departed from the Yuen Long District to strike a balance between the services to the Tuen Mun residents and the number of stops in the Tuen Mun District.

50. The Chairman said Member’s major concern was that the TD arranged the newly increased routes to near the bus stops which were already very crowded and they were worried that the situation would worsen further. 51. A Member said that apart from the crowdedness of the passengers queuing at the bus stops, he showed concern about too many buses waiting to near the stops causing obstruction to the road traffic.

52. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department would not consider to arrange the provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for the buses which departed from the North District for the time being to order to reduce the impact on the bus stops on the Tuen Mun Road.

53. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that according to the information provided by the TD, the journey was indeed would be shorter than the original routing and the fare would be lower if the routes which departed from the North District passed through the LINK under normal traffic conditions. He continued to say that he understood the TD needed to consider the views of other district councils. He also opined that the department could consider to launch bus priority measures to reduce the impact of the road traffic on the bus operations.

54. A Member said that the TD had expressed that the transportation options for the Tuen Mun residents to go to the airport would be limited if the route diversion arrangements could not be implemented once and for all. However, he opined that the number of airport buses in the Tuen Mun District would remain unchanged after the

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Action implementation of the captioned plan. Somehow, the routes which departed from other districts would seldom have stops provided in the Tuen Mun District so what the department had said was not well-founded and he requested the department to consider to implement the captioned plan in phases. He continued to say that the journey to the airport via the LINK was shorter and the fare was lower and he believed that it would attract a large number of vehicles to use it. Therefore, he requested the TD to release the data on the traffic flow assessment in the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK. Besides, he pointed out that the airport bus routes which departed from and Kwai Fong had a longer journey than Route No. E33 but the fare was lower so he requested the TD to provide explanations.

55. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department took the TMDC’s views very seriously. However, the department considered that there was no coverage of airport bus service for some of the residents along the Tuen Mun Road currently so it was hoped that there would be en-route stops provided on the Tuen Mun Road by the routes which departed from the Yuen Long District. She continued to say that Route No. E36A would pass through the Tuen Mun town centre to go to the Tung Chung West and the Tung Chung North. The department hoped that Tuen Mun residents could be benefited from the route. Moreover, the department would pass Member’s request for traffic data to the division concerned to follow up. On the fares of the airport buses from Tsuen Wan and Kwai Fong, the department approved the fare of the routes according to the fare scales of the Long Win. If the Long Win lodged an application for the revision of the fare scales of the routes concerned on the captioned arrangements, the department would ensure that the fare could comply with the requirements of the fare scales. The TD had always encouraged the operators to provide fare concessions to reduce passengers’ burden in so far as operation and finance permitted.

56. A Member said that Routes “E” would not pass through Cheong Hong Road after the route diversion so he enquired whether the route concerned would not near the bus stop at the upper level of the airport terminal building any longer. He pointed out that the captioned paper had not shown the above change specifically. He said that the Lantau Link and the LINK would be free of charge in the future so the TD should

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Action consider to reduce the charging standard of the fare scales. He continued to say that the Tuen Mun Pier area was situated at the downstream of the airport bus routes and there would be no seats available mostly for the residents when they boarded the buses. As it was closer to the airport, so he suggested that there should be sectional fare provided at the Tuen Mun Pier area. He further pointed out that there was limited passenger volume in the vicinity of Wu Shan Road. It was not worthwhile for the arrangement of Route No. E33P to pass through Wu Shan Road as it needed to travel via the busy Wong Chu Road. He suggested arranging Route No. E33 to travel the above road section. Besides, he requested the airport buses to provide $2 fare concession for the elderly.

57. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that Routes “E” would go to the Airport Ground Transportation Centre directly according to the captioned arrangements. Under the route diversion arrangement, there would be Route No. A34 launched and the frequency of other Routes “A” would increase. As there were buses queuing to enter the stop on Cheong Hong Road from time to time currently, some routes were arranged to drop off passengers at the Ground Transportation Centre so that the passengers could arrive at the destinations more quickly. On the arrangement of Route No. E33P to travel via Wu Shan Road, the TD wanted to keep the existing stops to reduce the impact on the existing passengers when planning the route. Besides, the department noted Member’s views on the fare scales.

58. The Chairman enquired why the captioned paper did not show that Routes “E” would not pass through the airport terminal building.

59. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that Cheong Hong Road had been deleted in the routes after diversion so it was not shown in the paper.

60. A Member said that the captioned paper did not show Routes “E” would change to travel via East Coast Road so he/she was dissatisfied with the TD for the route diversion.

61. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that Routes “E” in the Tuen Mun District had

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Action travelled via the East Coast Road currently according to the schedule of service. She would apologise for the omission to show it in the paper. The department would review the content of the paper again and make amendment if needed.

62. A Member said that she was dissatisfied that there was still no arrangement for whole day service of Route No. E33P after the commissioning of the LINK. She opined that the distance of Route No. A34 was longer so she believed there were sufficient passengers to support the whole day service. However, she was worried that the route concerned would be very crowded when reaching the Tuen Mun District so she opined that there was still a need for the whole day service of Route No. E33P. She continued to say that Routes “A” would not pass through Tung Ching in the past so it had higher fare than Routes “E”. However, Routes “A” would have a similar routing with Routes “E” after the implementation of the captioned plan so the fare should be determined according to the standard of Routes “E”. 63. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the service hours of Route No. E33P would not change for the time being according to the captioned arrangements. She continued to say that the bus company would provide the whole day service of a new Route “A” (i.e. Route No. A34) to go to the airport and increase the frequency of Routes “A” under the route diversion arrangements. Moreover, there would be whole day service of a new Route “E” (i.e. Route No. E36A) between Tuen Mun and Tung Chung. At that time, the coverage of the bus network to and from the North Lantau in the Tuen Mun District would be much wider currently and the overall carrying capacity of buses to and from the North Lantau would be increased too. Besides, the destination of about 20 to 35 per cent of the passengers was the vicinity of the airport terminal building according to the distribution of passengers of Routes “E” in the district currently. It was expected that some passengers might change to take Routes “A” so the frequency of Routes “A” would be increased and the frequency of Routes “E” would be similar as the current one. After the service hours of Route No. E33P, most of the passengers of the route could take Route No. A34 to go to the North Lantau. The TD would pay close attention to the operations of Route No. E33P and the change of the passengers’ travel mode after the commissioning of the LINK. If the passenger volume of the routes concerned increased and met the requirements of the guidelines for the frequency increase at that time, the department would request the bus company to strengthen the services of the

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Action routes concerned. As far as the fare was concerned, Routes “A” and Routes “E” belonged to different route groups so the department would approve the fares of the routes concerned according to their respective travel distance.

64. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the last departure to the airport and the first departure to Tuen Mun of Route No. E33P had limited passenger volume currently. However, the company would consider to extend the service depending on the change in the passenger volume after the commissioning of the LINK.

65. A Member said that there was often traffic congestion on the Tuen Mun Road -Hung Kiu Section. Coupled with the late completion of the Tuen Mun Western Bypass, he was worried that the situation would worsen further after the implementation of the captioned plan. In this connection, he supported that diversion of the routes to the LINK from other districts should be implemented in phases and he requested the TD to provide explanations on the progress in the construction of the Tuen Mun Western Bypass. He further agreed that Route No. A33X should not pass through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road and he suggested the provision of stops at Hung Kiu and Tuen Yan Street for Route No. E36 to facilitate the residents nearby taking the bus.

66. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department would review the feasibility of the provision of a stop in Tuen Yan Street for Route No. E36 after collecting views from different district councils. She continued to say that he would pass the enquiries on the Tuen Mun Western Bypass to the division concerned of the department to follow up. Moreover, she understood the worries about the possible traffic congestion in Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road in some time slots. The department would pay attention to the operations of the route after the implementation of the diversion arrangement of Route No. A33X and it would make a review with the bus company again if needed.

67. A Member said that Route No. A34 had more stops between the terminus and Leung King compared with Route No. A33X. Therefore, he was worried that there were no seats available when Leung King residents boarded the bus. He further requested the TD to provide whole day service for Route No. E33P on trial basis first

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Action and then adjust the frequency when there was not sufficient passenger volume. On the TD’s remarks that it needed to consult the North District Council on the captioned plan, he continued to say he noticed that many North District councillors also suggested that the captioned plan should be implemented in phases. Besides, on the TD’s remarks that the frequency in the non-peak hours would not be implemented until later, he opined that it should be more difficult to arrange the frequency in the peak hours than the non-peak hours so he did not understand what the TD said. He also had objections to Route No. A33X passing through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road and requested the TD to adjust the routing concerned.

68. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department would study with the bus company on the feasibility of the launch of special departures if needed having regard to the passenger volume of Route No. A34 after implementation. She continued to say that the department expected that the travel mode of the passengers of Route No. E33P might change after the commissioning of the LINK so it would pay close attention to the passenger demands of the route after the route diversion with the bus company. If the passenger demands met the requirements of the guidelines for the increase of bus frequency, the department would request the bus company to increase frequency or extend the service hours. The TD would also continue to listen to the views of the North District Council on the captioned arrangements. At that time, it would consider the views of the TMDC on the implementation of the captioned arrangements together. Besides, on the routing of No. A33X, the department would pay attention to the operations of the route after the implementation of the captioned arrangements and it would review the route arrangement concerned with the bus company in due course. As far as the frequency arrangement was concerned, there was higher passenger volume in the peak hours. It would need higher frequency and involve more bus resources so the department would arrange the frequency in the peak hours first generally speaking. It would further discuss the arrangement for the non-peak hours with the bus company later.

69. A Member said that the travel distance of the airport buses in the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK would be shortened by 40 per cent but the proposed fare reduction in the captioned paper was no more than 20 per cent.

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Action Therefore, he requested to adjust the reduction to over 20 per cent. He continued to say the captioned paper indicated that there was only 79% patronage on Route No. E33P in the busiest one hour. However, he noticed that passengers at the bus stop on Wu Shan Road often could not board the bus in the peak hours or there was standing capacity in the bus only. Therefore, he suggested that there should be a special departure from the Tuen Mun town centre every hour, which would go to the airport via the Tuen Mun Pier area to ensure that residents in that area could take the bus successfully. Besides, there was often traffic congestion on Lung Mun Road currently. Coupled with the water pipe works being carried out at the road section concerned, he was worried that Lung Mun Road could not afford the newly increased vehicular flow after the commissioning of the LINK. In this regard, he requested the TD to provide the data on the vehicular flow assessment on the major roads in the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK at the next meeting of the TTC. He further pointed out that there was only one parking space at the bus stop near the Butterfly Light Rail Stop and there was no pedestrian crossing or footbridge equipped with lifts nearby. He was worried that the bus stop concerned could not afford the newly increased bus routes after the implementation of the captioned plan. He requested the TD to send officers to conduct a site inspection.

70. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that fares of franchised buses were determined according to the fare scales of bus companies. The department would ensure that the fare would not exceed the maximum fare of the fare scales when approving applications for the revised schedule of service submitted by the bus companies after the implementation of the arrangements. On the suggestion for the launch of special departures from the Tuen Mun town centre, the department would follow up with the bus companies if needed having regard to the passenger demands. She continued to say that on the request for provision of the data on the vehicular flow on the roads in the district, she would pass it to the division concerned of the department to follow up.

71. Mr. Icarus YEUNG of the TD said that as what the department understood, the Highways Department was retrofitting lifts for the walkways in the district through the “Universal Accessibility” Programme. The department would relay Member’s concerned to the colleagues concerned. Besides, the department noticed that there was

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Action only a parking space at the bus stop near the Butterfly Light Rail Stop. It would consider the arrangement of bus stop carefully to avoid worsening the congestion at the bus stop concerned.

72. A Member said that there was still property development in the vicinity of Area 16, Tuen Mun. He was worried that the traffic congestion would become more serious after the commissioning of the LINK. Therefore, he requested the TD to provide the data on the traffic flow of Wong Chu Road, Hoi Wong Road and Lung Fu Road. He continued to say that Lung Fu Road, etc. was not designed for a large number of heavy vehicles so he enquired the Highways Department whether it would increase the maintenance work of the roads concerned having regard to the commissioning of the LINK.

73. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that she understood Member’s concern and would pass it the division concerned of the department to follow up.

74. Mr. Icarus YEUNG of the TD said that he would pass Member’s concern about road maintenance to the Highways Department to follow up. Moreover, the retrofitting of lifts for the footbridge at the Butterfly Light Rail Stop across Lung Mun Road was at investigation stage. If needed, he would request the Highways Department to provide supplementary information further after the meeting.

75. A Member said some residents who worked at the airport reflected to her that it was not sufficient to provide only one trip of Route No. E33P every 30 minutes currently. Moreover, the route was often full so there was a need to increase the frequency. She continued to say that there was often traffic congestion at the Lam Tei Interchange in the peak hours, and the conditions on Tsing Lun Road were the worst. In this regard, she requested the department concerned to provide the data on vehicular flow at the above road section, conduct environmental impact assessment and put forward improvement plans for the above road section to cope with the traffic pressure caused by the commissioning of the LINK and the development of Area 54, Tuen Mun in future.

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Action 76. The Chairman said that there were many Members who had enquired about the data on the vehicular flow so he enquired the TD when it could provide the information concerned.

77. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that she noted Members’ enquiries about the data on vehicular flow and would relay it to the division concerned. Moreover, she requested Members to provide details on the residents’ report about the insufficient service of Route No. E33P after the meeting so that the department could follow up.

78. The Chairman enquired which division of the TD would follow up on the data on vehicular flow.

79. Mr. Icarus YEUNG of the TD said that the traffic engineers of the regional office of the department would follow up on the matter concerned.

80. A Member requested the TD to send officers to conduct site inspections of the traffic congestion on Lung Mun Road in the peak hours. He said that many routes of airport buses would pass through the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Macao Hong Kong Port and he was worried that there would be a lot of “parallel traders” taking the buses. However, the “parallel traders” worked the whole day so he did not agree with the TD’s differentiation of peak hours and non-peak hours. Besides, he opined that bus companies could still make profit from advertisements on bus bodies even though there were losses in some routes. Therefore, he did not approve of the TD for over-protecting the interests of bus companies. He further requested the TD to list the estimated travel time of the routes in the captioned paper and enquired the department how to calculate the patronage of the routes.

81. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that she would relay Member’s concern to the traffic engineers of the department. She continued to say that the department would approve the fare of the routes concerned according to the respective fare scales of the franchised bus companies upon receipt of applications for the revision of the schedule of service from the bus companies. The government had launched the Public Transport Fare Subsidy Scheme to reduce the public transport expenses of members of

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Action the public. On the calculation of patronage, the department currently calculate the maximum carrying capacity and the actual number of passengers of each bus. Besides, the department noted Member’s view on the request for the paper to provide more information.

82. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the company would increase the frequency if individual routes had more passenger volume in the non-peak hours, e.g. Route No. B1. Moreover, the maximum carrying capacity of buses was calculated at six standing passengers in each square cubic metre and the frequency would be adjusted having regard to the patronage. He continued to say that the government was consulting the Legislative Council Panel on Transport on the proposed amendment to the maximum carrying capacity of buses. Once the recommendation concerned was implemented, there would be wider space provided to the bus passengers and the KMB also supported the above recommendation.

83. A Member requested refund of the price difference when passengers interchanged Routes “E” from Routes “A” and provision of a stop at the Yuet Wu Villas for the airport bus route. He continued to say that it was not enough for Routes “E” to pass through Siu Shan Court only. It should pass through Yuet Wu Villas or the Marina Garden. Moreover, he felt disappointed that the TD representative did not have effective interaction with Members on the captioned paper. He hoped that the department could assign a representative of a higher rank to attend the meeting.

84. The Chairman said that he believed what the Member meant was the response from the TD representative was disappointing.

85. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that on the suggestion for the provision of a stop at the Tuen Mun Pier area, the department had an initial plan to provide a stop near the Joint-user Complex. Besides, the department would study with the bus company on the feasibility of the launch of a special departure depending on the passenger demand after the implementation of the captioned arrangements. She continued to say that Route No. E33 would pass through the Lung Yat Estate according to the captioned arrangements. If the route was arranged to pass through the Yuet Wu Villas, the route

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Action would not pass through the Lung Yat Estate. Moreover, additional travel time would be involved if Route No. E33 passed through the Yuet Wu Villas. The frequency density might be reduced under the resources of the captioned arrangements.

86. Mr. LEUNG Ling-yin of the KMB said that the company would review the feasibility on the refund of price difference for the interchange to Routes “E” from Routes “A” again and it also noted the suggestion for the arrangement of Routes “E” to pass through the Yuet Wu Villas.

87. Mr. Rayson LAW of the Long Win said that the company was discussing the provision of a bus stop at the Yuet Wu Villas after the commission of the LINK with the TD.

88. A Member said that the fare of Routes “E” should be determined at $8. Besides, she was dissatisfied with the TD for not providing explanations on the specific data of the traffic flow on the roads in the district.

89. A Member said that he was dissatisfied with the TD for not revising the content of the paper when briefing on the captioned paper earlier. He continued to say that the “Annual Traffic Census 2019” would be published soon so he requested the department to promise to provide the traffic data of Wong Chu Road, Lung Mun Road and Lung Fu Road at the next meeting. Moreover, he requested the department to respond whether it could provide the traffic volume/road capacity ratio of the three roads above after the commissioning of the LINK.

90. A Member requested the TD to respond why there was no provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes No. A43 and A44 which departed from the North District. Besides, she reiterated that the charge of Route No. E33 had exceeded the provisions of the fare scale and requested the department to make a review again. She further requested the provision of whole-day service for both directions of Route E33P and standardisation of the scale charges of Routes “A” and “E”.

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Action 91. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that the department would ensure that the bus fare could comply with the provisions of the fare scale and it would encourage the bus company to provide fare concessions in so as far as operation and finances permitted. She continued to say that Routes No. A36 and A37 would increase frequency and provide stops in the vicinity of the Tuen Mun Road under the captioned arrangements. Therefore, the department opined that the above arrangement could meet the passenger demands along the Tuen Mun Road but it would review the feasibility of the provision of stops in the Tuen Mun District for Routes No. A43 and A44 again. On the arrangement of Route E33P, the overall bus network coverage to and from the North Lantau in the Tuen Mun District after the implementation of the arrangements would be wider currently and the overall carrying capacity to and from the North Lantau would be increased too so the department expected that some of the passengers of Route No. E33P would change to take Routes “A” because of the lower fare. Therefore, the department would study the feasibility of strengthening the service of Route No. E33P having regard to the passenger demands after the implementation of the captioned arrangements. Moreover, on Member’s request for the traffic data, she could not promise that the department would provide the data concerned but she would pass it to the division concerned to follow up.

92. A Member said that the TD arranged a large number of bus routes to go to Lung Fu Road via Wong Chu Road so he enquired about the contingency plan in case of incidents at the above road section. Besides, she opined that the Tuen Mun Western Bypass should be constructed expeditiously.

93. A Member requested the TD to assign an official to attend the next meeting of the TTC to explain the impact on the traffic flow in the Tuen Mun District upon the commissioning of the LINK. Moreover, he requested the TD again to send officials to conduct a site inspection at the bus stop near the Butterfly Light Rail Stop.

94. A Member suggested that there should be one month’s time to observe the impact of the newly-increased vehicular flow on the roads in the Tuen Mun District after the commissioning of the LINK before the captioned plan was implemented in phases.

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Action

95. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that in case of serious traffic incidents on the roads, the TD would handle according to the usual procedures generally speaking, including discussion with public transport operators about alternative arrangements and informing the general public of the latest conditions of the roads affected and the neighbourhood, and suggesting that the general public should plan their journey early and use other public transport services to go to their destinations. She continued to say that the department noted the views on the implementation of the captioned arrangements in phases and would review it again.

96. A Member said that the Legislative Council had discussed the amendment to the calculation of the maximum capacity and he hoped that the provisions concerned could be reviewed as soon as possible. He continued to say he did not agree with the TD representative’s response that the bus frequency could be increased in future. He opined that buses would break down frequently so traffic congestion coupled with buses broken down would worsen the situations further. Besides, on the TD representative’s remarks that there would be no airport bus service for the residents of Lung Yat Estate if Route No. E33 was arranged to pass through the Yuet Wu Villas, he pointed out that currently there was only the return trip of the airport bus that would near the Lung Yat Estate.

97. A Member said that many Routes “E” would not pass through Cheong Hong Road according to the supplementary information provided by the TD so he requested the department to clarify the arrangement concerned. Moreover, he reiterated that Route No. A33X should not pass through Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road.

98. A Member suggested conducting a site inspection at the bus interchange of the LINK to see whether the siting concerned would cause impact on the traffic on Lung Mun Road. She continued to say that according to the past traffic impact assessment, the traffic flow in Lung Mun Road would be saturated in 2026 so the Tuen Mun Western Bypass needed to be completed in 2026. In this connection, she suggested that the TTC should follow up on the progress in the construction of the Tuen Mun Western Bypass together.

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Action

99. Miss Natalie YU of the TD said that on Member’s concern about the travel route of No. E33, there would be arrangement for Route No. E33 to pass through Lung Yat Estate in the direction of the airport under the captioned arrangements. Besides, all Routes “E” would go to the ground transportation centre directly after passing through the airport logistics area under the captioned arrangements. Passengers could use the bus stop at the airport ground transportation centre outside the airport terminal building to go to the terminal building.

100. Mr. Icarus YEUNG of the TD said that the bus interchange of the LINK was situated in front of the tunnel entrance/exit of the LINK, having some distance with the Lung Mun roundabout. It would not affect the traffic on Lung Mun Road under normal circumstances. Besides, the department would continue to pay attention to the traffic conditions on Lung Mun Road and would relay Member’s concern to the traffic engineer. He continued to say that passengers could use the interchange arrangement at the bus interchange of the LINK properly so that they could go to different locations of the North Lantau more efficiently.

101. The Chairman concluded that the TD repeatedly claimed the vehicular flow on the truck roads such as Tuen Mun Heung Sze Wui Road, Wong Chu Road, Lung Mun Road and Lung Fu Road in the district could still be acceptable after the commissioning of the LINK but it did not provide substantial data to convince Members and residents. He continued to say that on the positioning, fares and interchange concessions of Routes “A” and “E”, the TD said on the one hand that the positioning of Routes “A” and “E” had difference so there would be different charges, but it said on the other hand that passengers of the current Routes “E” could change Routes “A”, which was quite contradictory. The captioned paper did not specifically provide explanations on some of the critical details and needed Members to raise enquiries on their own initiatives. Moreover, on Members’ suggestion for implementation of the diversion arrangements for the routes from Yuen Long District and the North District in phases, the TD could not provide appropriate responses to Members’ worries. In this regard, he said that the TTC would continue discussion about the captioned agenda item at its 4th meeting and

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Action request the TD to provide more information and data on the matters about which Members showed concern. He further pointed out that many people who showed initiatives to study traffic problems in the community had many comments on the captioned paper but it could not be followed up further as there was insufficient data.

102. The Chairman requested the TD to provide further response to Member’s views and explain the implementation plan after accepting the views or the reasons for rejecting them at the next meeting. He continued to say he hoped that the long existing and potential traffic problems in the Tuen Mun District could be tackled together through the implementation of the captioned plan so that 500,000 Tuen Mun residents could enjoy a more ideal traffic system.

I V. Any Other Business and Date of Next Meeting 103. There being no other business, the meeting was closed at 12:31 p.m. The next meeting would be held at 9:30 a.m. on 24 August 2020 (Monday).

(Post-meeting note: the 4th meeting of the TTC was eventually held at 9:30 a.m. on 9 September 2020)

Tuen Mun District Council Secretariat Date: October 2020 File Ref: HAD TMDC/13/25/TTC/20

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