Bridge will be finished on time despite delays, says roads chief
14 March 2009
South China Morning Post

Hong Kong was lagging behind in work on its connecting facilities for the cross-delta bridge linking it with Zhuhai and Macau, Director of Highways Wai Chi-sing said yesterday.

But the project's designers said the delay would not hold up work on the bridge, which is expected to be completed before 2016.

Speaking after a contract-signing ceremony in Zhuhai that signalled the start of design work on the 37.45 billion yuan (HK$42.53 billion) project, Mr Wai said work on building the bridge's border checkpoint northeast of Chek Lap Kok airport would not begin until the middle of next year.

"Our highest aim, of course, is to finish our work at the same time as the main bridge structure, but we only learned that we needed to build a checkpoint in 2007, so we are lagging behind a bit," he said.

Ove Arup & Partners, a partner of the China Highway Planning and Design Institute that won the tender for the design work, said six years was more than enough to build both the checkpoint and connecting roads into the city, such as the Tuen Mun western bypass.

"It should take only about four years," said Arup director Naeem Hussain. The central government will oversee work on the main structure, which comprises a 6.75km tunnel, two artificial islands and a bridge 22.85km long.

Each government will manage work on its own border checkpoints and connecting roads. Macau is expected to start constructing a building to house its and Zhuhai's border checkpoints this year.

Hong Kong is still waiting for the findings, due in June, of an assessment of the environmental impact on Tung Chung residents of buildings for its border checkpoint. After that, the government will have to finish a second round of public consultation before it can move on to the detailed planning stage. The government plans to seek funding from the Legislative Council in June.

Another Arup director, Daman Lee, said the other two governments would not necessarily finish their checkpoints first despite starting earlier. "Macau needs to work out a time schedule with Zhuhai and they also have plans to develop the area around the checkpoint, so there are other considerations."

Zhang Xigang, of the China Highway Planning and Design Institute, said a consortium involving two other firms would carry out survey and design work simultaneously to ensure the preliminary work could be finished in nine months.

東涌居民抗議建人工島
22/03/2009
http://the-sun.on.cc/channels/img/endmarker.gif

【本報訊】耗資七百億元人民幣興建的港珠澳大橋工程陸續上馬，但香港口岸選址仍備受爭議。二十多名東涌居民昨日發起遊行，抗議政府在赤繮角機場以東興建人工島作為香港口岸，令東涌居民飽受噪音及空氣污染之苦，示威人士亦痛斥政府假諮詢，未有正視民意，要求政府將口岸改在機場以西的海灣興建。

二十多名東涌居民，包括映灣園、海堤灣畔及藍天海岸的住戶昨日遊行至離島民政事務處抗議，他們手執橫額並大叫「抗議政府假諮詢」的口號，又將過千市民簽名連同請願信寄給發展局局長林鄭月娥及民政事務總署。

海堤灣畔業委會副主席林悅表示，政府早前就口岸選址進行了七場的諮詢會，他出席了其中五場，當中共有二百多名市民反對政府建議的東面口岸方案，僅一人贊成，但事後政府仍一意孤行採納該方案。「政府根本只顧經濟效益方面尠想，漠視居民心聲。」

Bank of China picked to lead lending on mega-bridge

BEIJING, March 20 (Reuters) - Bank of China said on Friday that it had been chosen as the lead bank for the financing of a huge bridge connecting Hong Kong with Macau and the city of Zhuhai in southern China.

Banks will finance 22 billion yuan ($3.22 billion) of the 37.6 billion yuan investment, Bank of China said on its website, without giving details on what proportion of the loans it would be providing.

The remaining funds will be provided by the Chinese central government along with the governments of Guangdong province, Macau and Hong Kong, the statement said.

Officials have previously said that bank loans would be repaid from toll fees on the bridge, the construction of which is expected to start as early as this year.

With Beijing calling on banks to support its stimulus plans, China's state-owned lenders have been rushing to provide credit to big government-backed infrastructure projects that are seen as posing next to no default risk.

The bridge will connect Zhuhai, a city in the southwest of the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province, to the rest of the delta area and will slash travel times to Hong Kong. Currently, only ferries connect Zhuhai and Macau with Hong Kong. ($1=6.826 Yuan)

Beijing's investment in delta span unprecedented, designers say
14 March 2009
South China Morning Post

The central government had invested an unprecedented amount of manpower and resources in the cross-delta bridge given its political importance and technical complexity, project designers said.

Zhang Xigang of the China Highway Planning and Design Institute, the project's lead design firm, said it was the first time it had handled a job that combined a bridge, tunnel and artificial islands.

"Apart from technical challenges, the Pearl River estuary is also one of the busiest navigation channels and habitat of the Chinese white dolphin. We needed to put in our best team and technology," he said, adding that they would avoid working in the dolphin breeding season.

Up to 70 engineering experts, including 15 from overseas, will participate in the bridge's preliminary work.

The head of the project's advance work co-ordination group, Zhu Yonglin, said a lot of advanced technology would go into the bridge, which was being designed to last 120 years.

Naeem Hussain, director and fellow of the institute's partner Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong, said his firm would carefully control the number and dimensions of the bridge's columns to maintain current flow and minimise the work's impact on ship movements and the white dolphins.

Mr Hussain said another challenge was wind speed, which could reach 95 metres a second during a typhoon - 10 times as high as on a normal day.

But he said Arup had experience in tackling such challenges from its work on the Stonecutters Bridge, expected to be finished by the end of this year.

The cross-delta bridge's design and survey work will begin on Sunday.

Stretching across the boundaries
2 April 2009
New Civil Engineer

SPECIAL REPORT:HONG KONG-ZHUHAI-MACAU CROSSING - Plans for a 38km crossing between Hong Kong and Macau are pressing ahead with the appointment of Arup as lead designer. Jessica Rowson reports.

The Hong Kong-ZhuhaiMacau crossing is a giant in the world of bridges and tunnels. It will be the first major marine bridge and tunnel project in China, stretching a mammouth 38km between Lantau island in the south west of Hong Kong across the mouth of the Pearl river delta to the island of Macau and Zhuhai on the Chinese mainland.

The project has been on the drawing board for some time after frst being discussed by politicians in the 1980s. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Advance Work Coordination Group was established in 2003 and the China's Central Government and the regional governments of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau agreed fnance last summer.

"The idea of having a bridge came more than 20 years ago around 1983 and came from a local tycoon named Sir Gordon Wu, " says Arup director Daman Lee.

Arup has been involved with the Hong Kong section for the last four years and was officially appointed to carry out the preliminary design work for the 30km Chinese section last month in joint venture with Highway & Planning Design Institute (Beijing), COWI, First Harbour and Shanghai Tunnel.

"He frst proposed to shorten the over four hours journey from Hong Kong across the Pearl River Delta to Zhuhai so that cross-boundary import/export and port facilities in the region could be made more efficient, " says Lee.

"It is a fact that the Pearl River Delta region accounts for some 40% of China's GDP and hence it makes good sense to provide such infrastructure to continue the development pace around there. Also, such a link would help in promoting tourism in both directions as well as getting visitors to Macau." Now the funding is in place, the hard work really starts.

The crossing is split into two sections. The longest is in Chinese waters between China and the Hong Kong /China border in the South China Sea.

This connects with the Hong Kong section which runs for 8km from the border to Lantau island.

"The team we have is at the forefront of technology, " says Arup fellow and global bridge leader Naeem Hussain. "Among us, we have done some of the longest bridge crossings in the world. There's been some healthy cross-fertilisation." Four ffths of the length of the 30km main section is made up of a combination of cable stayed bridges and viaducts with the remainder an immersed tube tunnel. The crossing runs across the mouth of the Pearl River Delta which is a major river route. Cable stayed bridges will cross three navigation channels spanning between 290m and 450m. An immersed tube tunnel will take the crossing under a fourth navigation channel close to Lantau Island. Its proximity to Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok airport precluded bridge construction, meaning that a 5.5km immersed tube tunnel was the best option.

"The crossing is in a main navigation channel, " says Hussain. "There is an airport nearby, so we could not build a bridge [in that area] which was the reason for the tunnel. The immersed tube is the longest in the world at 5.5km long." As well as crossing navigation channels, the design had to minimise the bridge's impact on the estuary fows. The design team did this by limiting the size and numbers of columns in the water. The viaducts between the cable stay structures will span between 70m and 110m, reducing the number of columns needed and only one column is used per support point. The design team is also looking to bury pile caps in the sea bed.

"Long span viaducts allow the water to fow, " says Hussain.

"Also we will bury the pile caps in the sea. Normally the pile caps are up around sea level.

However, by burying the pile caps, the only obstruction to the water fow will be the columns.

The pile caps will be precast and dropped into a local excavation." Work on the crossing is due to start later this year and is due to be completed by 2016. Prefabrication holds the key to keeping construction work to this gruelling schedule.

"To complete by 2016, there has to be lots of ofsite fabrication, " says Hussain. "We are looking to minimise onsite works. We will be using precast columns and decks. There is lots of experience in prefabrication in Hong Kong. Similar to Korea and China, construction in bridges is moving to production in factories and assembly on site.

It gives good quality control and speed. We'll be doing deck at the same time as the foundations." The tunnel will be made of 100m long precast concrete segments and the deck will be made from precast concrete box sections.

"A lot of the [bridge] crossings in China are on the basis of two separate box structures [one for each carriageway] with two columns, " said Hussain.

"This one, we're making wide boxes [the width of the whole dual carriageway] and using single columns. This type of deck will be used for the cable stayed bridges too. It will speed up construction and the single column means there is less obstruction to the water." Piers for the cable stayed bridges will be around 170m tall meaning that they will be visible for miles. The centralised towers are elegant and slim-looking with a single row of cables down the middle.

"The bridge will be quite visible to anyone taking of from the airport, it's at the mouth of the delta so it will be seen from land, from Zuhai, Macau, Hong Kong, " says Hussain. "We want visual continuity between the tunnels and the facilities on the reclaimed land and the bridges.

The centralised towers have a slim, elegant look. We don't have huge A-frame towers."

Creating the two islands where the tunnel dives under the sea involves a considerable land reclamation work.

"The border crossing facility in Hong Kong will have to be created from scratch as a reclaimed island, " said Lee. "It's 120ha so it's quite a big place. A car would come in from Zhuhai, go through customs and then onto Hong Kong. Or it would park there and public transport would be used. Macau is too small to allow for car tra c so all cars [from Hong Kong and China will have to] park [at the border crossing] and take public transport".

With the clock ticking until work starts on this project, the focus is now on getting the details right.

"The next stage is to develop designs, " says Hussain. "We will start construction at end of year.

We are taking the design to the next stage. It will be a design and build contract with the fnal detailing done by contractors, but the whole scheme will be detailed precisely and then the contractor does the fabrication drawings and builds from them.

"With nine to 12 months before we start construction, there has to be a focused approach to design. The challenges are twofold. We need a construction methodology to be able to build it in a four to five year period and we need quality, a design that is aesthetically pleasing."

Funding for tri-city mega-bridge in S China secured, gov'ts say
Kyodo News

HONG KONG, April 14 -- The governments of Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macao and the Bank of China said Tuesday they have reached funding arrangements for the construction of a mega-bridge that will link the three cities in southern China.

The construction cost of the main section of the Y-shaped 35-kilometer, six-lane Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge is about 38 billion yuan ($5.6 billion).

''We have reached an important milestone for the project,'' Transport and Housing Secretary Eva Cheng told reporters. ''The governments providing capital for the project could lower the risk brought by the global financial crisis.''

The governments will cover 42 percent of the cost, and the Bank of China will act as a lead bank to form a consortium to provide a 35-year loan for the rest of the financing.

The Zhuhai government will provide about 7 billion yuan in funding, Hong Kong 6.75 billion yuan and Macao 1.98 billion yuan, while the bank will offer a loan of about 22 billion yuan at a low rate.

''A 35-year loan is the longest the Bank of China has offered,'' bank President Li Lihui said. ''We are honored to be trusted as being the lead bank to form a consortium for the loan.''

The three governments will also provide extra funding to build their own connecting sections of the bridge, which is expected to be completed by 2016.

The plan to build the mega-bridge was first contemplated in the 1980s, but Beijing only gave a green light to study the plan in 2003.

Travel time between Hong Kong and the two cities via the bridge would be cut to about half an hour from an hour or more now.

100-buck bridge
Hong Kong Standard
Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Toll charges for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai- Macau bridge could be as low as HK$100 for private cars - just over twice the fee motorists pay to use the Western Harbour Tunnel.

The toll charges will be kept low for the bridge - which will stretch almost 30 kilometers - because of favorable loan terms by the Bank of China, Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng Yue-wah said yesterday.

Cheng made the upbeat assessment after representatives of the Hong Kong, Guangdong and Macau governments announced agreement on the financing arrangements for the bridge, which will cost 37.73 billion yuan (HK$42.77 billion).

The governments will contribute 42 percent of the cost, with the mainland chipping in 7 billion yuan, Hong Kong 6.75 billion yuan and Macau 1.98 billion yuan.

The remaining 22 billion yuan will come from loans led by the Bank of China, with banks from all three regions allowed to participate.

The interest rate of the loan can be fixed or floating and will be 10 percent below the basis interest rate, which is the lowest level that can be offered according to mainland legislation.

The loan will be repaid within 35 years of the bridge's opening.

BOC president Li Lihui said: "This is a project which involves the longest period of loan repayment to which BOC has ever committed. But the risk is low and our management cost is also low."

Cheng said BOC had come up with a flexible and attractive financial arrangement. "We may be able to set the toll at the low
end of our previous assumption. We assumed HK$100 to HK$200 for private cars and HK$200 to HK$300 for trucks."

Cheng added that other factors such as daily expenses, traffic load and the state of the economy have to be taken into consideration.

The Western Harbour Tunnel charges HK$45 for private cars and HK$55 to HK$110 for trucks, depending on the size. As for the 6.75 billion yuan committed by the Hong Kong government, Cheng said she will seek funding from the Legislative Council Finance Committee before the summer recess.

A consortium of international and local firms is now drawing up preliminary designs for the 29.6-kilometer bridge, which is slated for completion by 2015 to 2016. Cheng said the three regions will strive to commence work this year.

A 130-hectare artificial island off the east side of the airport at Chek Lap Kok will be constructed. Cheng explained a port will be set up on the island, which will also be linked with Hong Kong and Shenzhen airports.

The three sides will set up a committee, which will decide on an authority responsible for financing, tendering, designing, construction, operation and management of the bridge.

China Communications may secure bridge deal
16 April 2009
South China Morning Post

China Communications Construction has a high chance of winning a substantial share of the project to build the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai Bridge, which is worth more than 70 billion yuan (HK$79.4 billion), analysts say.

Construction of the three-way bridge was scheduled to begin by the end of this year, so the contract would be awarded in the latter part of this year, said Meng Fengchao, a vice-chairman of the infrastructure construction firm. "We hope to get a piece of the action."

Shortly before the firm signed a contract to design the bridge last month, Premier Wen Jiabao announced that construction must begin by the end of the year, said Mr Meng. "So we changed our plans. Our burden will be large."

China Communications led the consortium that won the 200 million yuan design contract. Another consortium which included China Railway Group, a rail construction firm, lost the bid, said Macquarie analyst Anderson Chow.

"The fact that China Communications is doing the design gives it a very strong competitive advantage in winning the construction contract," said Mr Chow.

China Communications was expected to win the contract to build the bridge portion of the project, which is worth about 40 billion yuan, due to its track record in building bridges, including the 36-kilometre Hangzhou Bay Bridge, the world's longest sea-crossing bridge, he said.

"This is a challenging project, and only the most experienced companies will be selected. So China Communications will be a leading candidate," said Daiwa Institute analyst Geoffrey Cheng.

The project involves a 28km three-way bridge, a 6.7km undersea tunnel in the middle and two artificial islands, which must be dredged.

Because China Communications is one of the world's largest dredging firms, it stands a good chance of participating in this project, according to a source.

Despite the crisis, China Communications chief economist Liu Wensheng was confident that the overseas portion of the firm's revenue would rise to 25 per cent this year.

Last year, its turnover was 178.89 billion yuan, of which about 20 per cent came from overseas, largely Africa, said Mr Liu.

However, Phillip Securities analyst Carmen Wong believes the overseas portion of China Communications' revenue will shrink this year due to the global financial crisis.

Bank of China deal to keep bridge tolls down
15 April 2009
South China Morning Post

Private car drivers may pay just HK$100, or even less, to use the bridge linking Hong Kong with Macau and Zhuhai, thanks to a financing package which the Bank of China described as one of the best it has offered.

Bank of China (BOC) was selected as the lead bank to provide the three governments a loan of 22 billion yuan (HK$25 billion) or 58 per cent of the construction cost of the main bridge. It will charge an interest rate 10 per cent lower than its benchmark lending rate - the lowest possible allowed by the state authorities.

The 35-year repayment period is also one of the longest offered for major infrastructure projects.

"BOC is being realistic [to allow such a long repayment period], because no one can be sure how the bridge will perform in the future," a source at the bank said.

BOC president Li Lihui said the bank could provide the entire loan but sought to encourage other banks, including those in Hong Kong and Macau, to participate. "As the project bears such significance in both the social and economic aspects, we hope more banks can participate in the consortium," he said.

But the source said local banks may not be interested, or only be interested in providing a small loan, because they have smaller yuan holdings compared with mainland banks and they might be deterred by the long repayment period.

Hong Kong's Secretary for Transport and Housing, Eva Cheng, said all banks had an equal chance to join the consortium. The transport minister said the favourable lending terms allowed authorities to minimise tolls - calculated based on the project's lending terms, operating costs and income.

"Under the current financial arrangement, the tolls could be set at the lower end of our projected range. For example private cars - for which we expected to charge between HK$100 and HK$200 per trip - may now be charged HK$100."

The likely toll for trucks was about HK$200. But the final tolls could be lower as the estimates were based on a conservative traffic-flow-projection which assumed the existing cross-border vehicle quota system remained unchanged.

A limited number of vehicles are currently allowed to cross the border. This will be expanded, as the government plans to introduce a temporary cross-border permit for local drivers. A trial will be conducted this year.

Wang Yaming, vice-chairman of the Guangdong Development and Reform Commission, said the bridge's operator would not be a government department nor a private enterprise, although it would be monitored by the three governments. The governments are not required to indemnify the loan, and BOC cannot claim ownership of the bridge if the governments fail to pay, but it can then assume the right to impose charges.

合組事業單位管理
15 April 2009
香港經濟日報

　　粵港澳三地政府解決了港珠澳大橋的融資問題後，就大橋的建造及營運管理模式提出新合作機制，擬設雙層架構，先設「三地聯合工作委員會」督導，下設「事業單位」負責日常管理及運作，增加大橋經營靈活性。

　　港府運輸及房屋局表示，大橋目前的規劃，是由三地合組的前期工作協調小組處理，日後組織框架及模式，三地達成共識設委員會，模式接近現在的協調小組。

三地組雙層架構

　　委員會之下，將設「港珠澳大橋管理局」，管理局屬內地所謂的「事業單位」模式運作，負責具體組織項目實施，包括融資、招標、設計、建設、營運和管理等，管理局須向「三方聯合工作委員會」負責。運輸局指，三地政府將會通過協議釐定權責問題，詳細組織架構現正由三地與所聘請的專項法律顧問深入研究。

　　內地所謂的「事業單位」，其實與本港的「事業法人」相近，事業法人不屬正規的部門，大橋將來運作管理方面更加方便及靈活，就如以往港府轄下的九鐵公司，獨立營運鐵路。

Lower tolls expected to mean more traffic on HK-Macau-Zhuhai bridge
25 April 2009
South China Morning Post

The government has revised its projection on traffic flow for the future Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge, with estimates showing that 40 per cent more vehicles will use the link than previously forecast.

Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng said a revision was made because the tolls could be kept low after the Bank of China offered a low interest rate on the 22 billion yuan (HK$25 billion) loan for construction of the bridge, thus reducing operating costs.

"In past documents we submitted to the Legislative Council, we have used a conservative projection based on a report by the China Highway Planning and Design Institute. At that time the tender had yet to be conducted and financing arrangements were not yet clear," Ms Cheng told Legco's transport panel yesterday. "Now we have secured preferential financing terms. With the latest cost estimation, we believe the traffic flow will be about 40 per cent more than in the previous projection."

Under the original projection, 9,200 to 14,000 vehicles would use the bridge per day in 2016, and the figure would gradually rise to 35,700 to 49,200 in 2035.

Ms Cheng pledged to provide detailed revised figures to the Finance Committee's public works body when it sought funding approval from lawmakers.

The government would consider introducing short-term cross-border vehicle licences for drivers to use the bridge, the minister said. If a pilot scheme on short-term licences for the Western Corridor, which would be launched by the end of this year, was successful, similar permits might be used on the bridge.

Legislator Lau Kong-wah, of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, raised concerns about possible environmental pollution from mainland vehicles in the city, while the Democratic Party's Lee Wing-tat said more cross-border permits should be issued to Hongkongers.

The quota for vehicles travelling to the mainland would significantly exceed that for mainland vehicles coming to Hong Kong, Ms Cheng said in reply to Mr Lau's concerns.

Tolls for private cars and trucks would be HK$100 and HK$200, respectively. Construction of the bridge has been scheduled to start by the end of this year.

The Bank of China will charge an interest rate 10 per cent lower than its benchmark lending rate, which is the lowest allowed by the state authorities, on the loan for the three governments to build the main section of the bridge.

Link road for Zhuhai bridge will damage Lantau's coastline
5 May 2009
South China Morning Post

The Highways Department has hoodwinked the public over the impact of the proposed route of the link road from the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge and is now trying to do the same to members of the Legislative Council.

There is strong public opposition to the proposed route of the link road of the bridge, after it reaches Hong Kong.

Tung Chung Sustainable Development Alliance and other local community organisations have voiced concerns to the department regarding the impact of the proposed link road and have made counter proposals for a viable alternative.

The Highways Department's plan will result in:

Vehicle emissions and noise pollution within half a kilometre of Tung Chung town centre and other residential developments;

Permanent damage to Tung Chung Bay and the surrounding Lantau Island coastline; and

Damage to the Lantau Island-Tung Chung tourist experience and for visitors using the Ngong Ping 360 cable car, with a potential economic impact by reducing the tourist attraction of the area.

There is an alternative route for the link road. Tung Chung Sustainable Development Alliance has provided a new outline plan to the department.

The alternative route would:

Lessen vehicle emissions and noise pollution affecting Tung Chung residents as the road would be located out of sight of Tung Chung town centre;

Avoid a negative impact on health of the Tung Chung population; and

Ensure there is no impact on the natural beauty of the Lantau coastline and Tung Chung Bay.

We urge the Legislative Council Panel on Transport to take account of the public opposition to the road route proposed by the department.

It should adopt a plan that lessens the negative impact of this bridge.

There will be huge damage to the undersea environment, the coastline, to dolphins and to the health of Hong Kong people if the Highways Department does not agree to change the plans for this road.

Martin Purbrick, for Tung Chung Sustainable Development Alliance

Bridge billions clear early Legco hurdle
7 May 2009
Hong Kong Standard

Lawmakers have endorsed the release of HK$9.46 billion to kick-start the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge project.

The Legislative Council's public works subcommittee yesterday also approved HK$620 million to build the landing point in Hong Kong.

The next and final step for the administration is to seek approval from the Finance Committee.

When the funding will be on the committee's agenda is not known, but the earliest meetings are on May 22 and June 5.

Government officials have all along indicated work will start at the end of the year and estimate it will create 18,000 jobs, of which 3,000 are for professional and technical staff.

But the League of Social Democrats' Albert Chan Wai-ip said it is inappropriate for the government to seek funds because the environmental assessment has not been completed.

The Democratic Party's Lee Wing-tat said the administration has still to define land use near the Hong Kong landing point.

Director of Highways Wai Chi-sing promised to carry out an environmental assessment.

A consortium of international and local firms is now drawing up preliminary designs for the 29.6-kilometer bridge, which is slated for completion by 2015-2016.

A 130-hectare artificial island east of Chek Lap Kok will be constructed.

The whole bridge costs 37.73 billion yuan (HK$42.77 billion), which will be funded by the three governments.

珠澳人工島 填海設計招標
10 May 2009
文匯報 (香港)

【本報珠三角新聞中心記者羅冬凱珠海9日電】港珠澳大橋前期工作協調小組日前發佈招標公告，開始對港珠澳大橋珠澳口岸人工島填海工程進行設計招標。據悉，該工程採用內地公開招標、資格後審方式進行，招標的內容包括珠澳人工島填海工程的初步設計、施工圖設計及後續服務。

擬建的港珠澳大橋珠澳口岸人工島位於珠海拱北灣南側，填海面積約216.43公頃，是港珠澳大橋重要配套工程之一。本次招標內容為珠澳口岸人工島填海工程的初步設計、施工圖設計及不含工程地質勘探工作在內的一些後續服務。

不接受聯合體投標

據悉，與以往港珠澳大橋相關工程的招標要求不同，珠澳人工島的招標要求投標人必須以獨立投標人形式投標，不接受聯合體投標。招標實行資格後審規則，要求投標人應為獨立法人單位，具有建設部頒發的工程設計綜合甲級資質，或水運行業(港口工程)設計甲級資質，或海洋行業設計甲級資質，或公路行業設計甲級資質；投標人須在近10年內，至少完成2項或以上單個面積100萬平方米或以上海洋環境下造地及軟土地基處理項目的設計工作，具備承擔本招標項目設計的人員、設備等技術力量和能力。招標單位將在5月13日當天發售招標文件。

Macau and Zhuhai have already put the bid out for design service... and we can't even make up our mind where does the boarder control and facility island go.

魯平促港發展實體經濟
9 May 2009

【明報專訊】參與香港回歸中英談判的重要人物、前國務院港澳辦主任魯平在其回憶錄《魯平口述香港回歸》一書中，特別談及香港回歸後的經濟問題，指香港單靠發展金融業支柱並不足夠，「光靠CEPA，光靠『自由行』，不解決問題」，他強調香港要走多元化道路，發展實體經濟。

魯平在回憶錄中，又提到首任特首董建華，形容董建華是很正直的人，任勞任怨，但他是商人，不是政治家，作為領導人，「好人政治」是行不通的。

指港府不理港珠澳橋河套建議

現時香港積極爭取與廣東省加強經濟合作，以及興建港珠澳大橋和發展邊境河套區等。但魯平在回憶錄中指出，港珠澳大橋早於90年代籌委會時期已提出，而廣東亦一早建議香港和深圳在河套區發展科技基地，共同開發高科技產品，然而方案提了很久，香港政府都沒有興趣，不理不睬。

魯平形容，現在上海已經有洋山港這深水港，二期、三期完成以後，肯定大大超過香港。他說，香港要有憂患意識，「光靠CEPA，光靠『自由行』，不解決問題。金融業固然是一個支柱，但畢竟是虛擬經濟，錢來得快也去得快。香港的經濟要向多元化的方向發展，虛擬經濟要以實體經濟為基礎。」

他又指出，若香港不抓緊發展，很可能會在某些方面失去競爭力，故香港應作全面、長遠的規劃，並要和整個國家的規劃緊密結合。

魯平又提到，當年中央曾經醞釀過在1997年前由一個中英認同推舉的香港中國公民擔任副總督，回歸後自然成為第一任特首，但最後因為末代港督彭定康而令方案未能提出。

稱董建華「好人政治」行不通

他又形容董建華是正直的人，的確想給香港做點事，「但是他畢竟是個商人，不是個政治家。我往往說作為一個領導人，『好人政治』是行不通的。他一個人在那兒孤軍奮戰。新選出來的特首要取得英方留下來的整個一套公務員班子的合作，形成有效管理體制，不是一件容易的事，其間會產生很多問題，要是像原來設想的有個副總督，事情就好辦多了。」

Bridge projects will meet criteria for sustainable development
16 May 2009
South China Morning Post

We refer to Paul Zimmerman's letter ("New bridge appears even more ill-conceived as details emerge", May 7) concerning the projects associated with the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

The government is committed to sustainable development and has conducted robust environmental impact assessments on the cumulative impact of various projects associated with the bridge. The findings reveal that, with effective measures, the projects will meet the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance requirements for air, noise and visual etc. The impact on Tung Chung residents will be minimal, as we put the proposed boundary crossing facilities about 2km away from them.

We have examined different options before coming up with the recommended layout. It will cause less resistance to water flow and impact on navigation safety; avoid affecting 2km of natural coastline and 35 hectares of country park on west Lantau; cause less impact on the dolphins populated more densely in the western waters of the airport island; and reduce 1.8km of total seawall length. We also find running the Hong Kong link road along the north side of airport island not feasible since it will affect the operation and safety of the airport. It will also cause an extra 3km detour, thus increasing social costs, such as time and fuel consumption, and exhaust emissions; cost HK$13b more in construction; and require all-day ventilation and lighting for the tunnel. Overall, the recommended proposal meets the sustainable development criteria more.

Concerning linkage with the airport and other transport infrastructures, we will make use of the existing automated people mover to enable passengers travelling between the border crossing facility and the airport to progress without the need for custom clearance. There will also be space reserved for the future airport rail link. We have, however, no plan to link up the border crossing facility with a new MTR system. Traffic studies confirmed that the proposed border crossing facility can cope with the passengers and traffic demand brought by the bridge.

K.M. Bok, chief engineer Highways Department

There will also be space reserved for the future airport rail link.

Do they mean to extend the Airport Express or the future HKIA & Shenzhen Airport train system?

Do they mean to extend the Airport Express or the future HKIA & Shenzhen Airport train system?

Probably the latter one.
The current AE terminates at the AsiaExpo just right next to the building at grade, any further extension can be a big pain in the butt.

Eirgh ... probably some weird reclamation needs to happen to build a tunnel approach, but that will also affect the ferry routes slightly.

Eirgh ... probably some weird reclamation needs to happen to build a tunnel approach, but that will also affect the ferry routes slightly.

i'm more concerned about the new marriott hotel, if they decided to go ahead as planned, there wont be any "sea view" room anymore

Protect dolphins or else, warns group
Hong Kong Standard
Thursday, May 21, 2009

Hong Kong's famed Chinese white dolphins face environmental catastrophe unless moves are made to protect their habitat from a rash of construction projects.

The warning comes from the World Wide Fund for Nature, which is calling for Tai O and the Soko Islands off Lantau to be declared marine parks.

WWF says environmental impact studies for 10 impending infrastructure and leisure projects covering northern Lantau fail to address the affects they will have on dolphins.

Their habitat stretches from Lantau's western, southern and northern shores to the Tuen Mun coastline.

WWF wants the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau Bridge impact report, due for completion by the middle of next month, to be reworked to include a more in-depth review of the cumulative affects of several big construction projects.

"Even though there have been major reclamations before, none of them has cut right through the middle of the dolphin grounds. You just can't predict the impact on the dolphins of such a massive development in their midst," said WWF senior conservation officer Alan Leung Sze-lun.

Noise pollution is one of the leading causes of mortality among dolphins and Leung said this, together with the dredging and piling that will displace small fish the creatures eat, will be a double blow.

The city's western waters are home to more than 1,000 white dolphins.

WWF's call for new marine parks follows a 2002 endorsement by the Country and Marine Parks Board. The Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said reviews into the impact on the dolphins were ongoing.

Can they make some use of surface of the artificial island? Like... a dolphin protection and observation base or something? That should appease the dolphin supporters a bit.

Bridge landing point move sought

Adele Wong

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Green activists and Tung Chung residents want the landing point of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge pushed further north from the proposed artificial island near the airport.

They also dispute the government's claim that such a move would cost an extra HK$13 billion, saying it would be HK$3 billion at most.

The proposed 12.4 kilometer road that will link the 29-kilometer bridge through the airport to the border crossing facility should be moved further away from people's homes to minimize environmental and light pollution, the groups said yesterday.

"Our solution may cost a little bit more, but will be less damaging to the environment. What we want to see is that the impact [on the environment] minimized as much as possible," said Jeff Lam- yuet, a representative of Tung Chung North residents and online forum tungchungtown.com.

Designing Hong Kong founding member Paul Zimmerman said the estimate of HK$13 billion in extra costs for the alternative proposal was exaggerated, and that it should not be more than HK$2 billion to HK$3 billion over the current budget.

The groups want a stretch of the road linking the Hong Kong boundary through Chep Lap Kok airport to be moved northward, and the current location for a border crossing facility to be moved from the east to the western end. This would shorten the time needed for high-security measures to be installed near the border point, besides minimizing light and noise pollution from vehicles.

It would also salvage the natural shoreline along Chek Lap Kok island, Zimmerman said.

Islands district councillor Ophelia Lam Yau-han and representatives of the Tung Chung residents and environmental groups, including Designing Hong Kong, Tung Chung Sustainable Development Alliance, WWF, Green Lantau Association, Professional Commons, Clear the Air, Association for Geoconservation Hong Kong and Hong Kong Mountain Bike Association all support the alternative proposal.

AGHK convenor Julian Kwong Tse-hin said there are only two natural "red coast" shorelines made of sedimentary rocks to be found locally, and the hiking trails between Tung Chung and Tai O, near where the bridge will be built, is one of them.



Source: http://www.thestandard.com.hk/news_detail.asp?we_cat=4&art_id=84824&sid=24564867&con_type=1&d_str=20090715&fc=4

Opinion : Road pricing should cover whole of city
21 July 2009
South China Morning Post

The environment minister has said that roadside air quality has not significantly improved ("No quick fixes for the problem of air quality", July 16). Edward Yau Tang-wah said without tackling other sources he will never be able to deliver satisfactory air quality.

He is shedding responsibility for dealing with roadside air pollution, which is an assault on people's health.

There are ways that he could deal with current and future polluters.

The cost of speeding up the replacement and upgrading of existing diesel engines in the buses, coaches and trucks on our roads has been identified by the government and by think tanks. All it takes is the political will to implement the measures.

As for future polluters, the central, Hong Kong and Macau governments are committed to a target of 50,000 vehicles [a day]crossing the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge.

This commitment is linked to the payback for the financiers of the bridge.

The political reality is that once the bridge is built - as with all other cross-border links - it will be unacceptable to have the Audit Commission report that the bridge is being underused and that our investments are underperforming.

This would embarrass its original proponents.

To achieve performance targets the governments will do what is needed and turn the tap by issuing sufficient cross-border licences for vehicles.

Where will all these vehicles go in Hong Kong? Dropping off passengers and belching fumes in crowded Mong Kok? Blocking Magazine Gap Road and Repulse Bay Beach Road to allow day trippers to take in the disappearing sights of Hong Kong?

We need electronic road pricing throughout Hong Kong, with charges subject to engine type, the number of wheel axles and the time of day and location. Moreover, we need transport interchanges which see people transfer from vehicles into environmentally-friendly transport.

When I asked Eva Cheng, our transport minister, some time ago she said that road pricing is only being studied for Central and that expanding this was not a transport but an environmental issue. She was smoothly passing the ball.

Now that the financing for the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge has been approved the environment minister and his colleagues owe Hong Kong people clear answers, not a confusing smokescreen about how complicated things are, because they are not. They are clear to see, if you want to.

Paul Zimmerman, founding member, Designing Hong Kong Limited

Opinion : Reclamation for delta bridge
29 June 2009
South China Morning Post

I have some reservations on the size of the planned reclamation work off the northeastern end of Chek Lap Kok airport, even though this site is the best option out of several put forward.

The 130 hectares of reclaimed land is for the border checkpoint plus link roads at the end of the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge.

The suggestion of locating the checkpoint at the other end of Chek Lap Kok with the construction of a tunnel is much worse as the waters there are more ecologically sensitive.

If it was chosen, a larger area of reclaimed land would be needed for traffic and the project would be a billion-dollar replica of Aberdeen Tunnel. Extra safety provisions would have been necessary as well.

I am constantly worried about more reclamation, but it seems two lots of land along the bay were not being considered for the checkpoint, especially now that it was outside the flight path, less land would be used for a higher structure.

I agree that construction of the checkpoint along the Airport Channel should not be pursued further as the environmental risks to the coastline, the ocean and sea life are higher.

This brings us back to the first option. I would suggest that the Highways Department seriously consider reducing the proposed size of the checkpoint by installing some equipment on lower levels, and adopt technology and measures to minimise the space needed for coaches waiting to clear customs. Except essential amenities, no space should be reserved for commercial activities.

Separate areas designated for coaches carrying transit passengers would further reduce the size of the reclamation. The structure should be in harmony with the airport terminal with a more open roof design and plants.

The original design scope is not far from our professional views and, with further enhancement, I am confident members of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers and the public would support the administration.

I wonder what has made the government so indecisive; it should get its act together.

Peter Y. Wong, president, Hong Kong Institution of Engineers

"Except essential amenities, no space should be reserved for commercial activities."
very unlikely

Cross-boundary bridge projects gazetted

The construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Hong Kong link road and boundary crossing facilities were gazetted today. The projects will be completed in 2015-16.

The building of the link road will start in mid-2011. It will provide a 12km dual three-lane carriageway connecting the main bridge on the Hong Kong side with the boundary crossing facilities.

The works include construction of a 1km tunnel at Scenic Hill, a 9.4km elevated expressway connecting the main bridge with the tunnel, and a 1.6km at-grade expressway connecting the tunnel with the internal roads of the boundary crossing.

The proposal also includes construction of a 2.3km seawall and the reclamation of government foreshore and seabed to form 17 hectares of land for the construction of the link road and the associated tunnel operation, as well as maintenance facilities for the tunnel.

Road works for the boundary crossing facilities will start next August and will provide carriageways connecting with the link road, the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link and Hong Kong International Airport.

The works also include reclamation of government foreshore and seabed to form approximately six hectares of land southeast of the airport for the carriageways and road tunnel connecting the bridge crossing facilities with the airport.

There will be construction of carriageways, footpaths, footbridges and public transport interchanges within the bridge crossing facilities.

Written objections should reach the Secretary for Transport & Housing at the 16/F Murray Building, Garden Road, Central, by October 6.


Source: http://www.news.gov.hk/en/category/infrastructureandlogistics/090807/html/090807en06006.htm

Work on link road to drive up dust levels
14 August 2009
SCMP

Construction of the link road for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge will generate dust and worsen air quality in Tuen Mun, rural Lantau and Tung Chung, according to the environmental-impact assessment.

During construction, annual concentrations of "total suspended particulates" - which range from coarse dust particles to finer ones that can be breathed in - will exceed the Environmental Protection Department standards by about 30 per cent in seven non-residential parts of Tuen Mun, including a public park at Butterfly Beach and a fire station.

When the link road opens, Tung Chung town and village houses about 100 metres south of the road will see higher annual concentrations of fine respiratory particles that are close to the limit.

Highways Department consultant Ove Arup & Partners said nitrogen dioxide and respirable suspended particulates in all parts of the project would meet government standards and no mitigation measures would be needed.

But air pollution researcher Chan Chak-keung of the University of Science and Technology said there was some doubt whether this would mean the air quality would be acceptable in future, given that the government was planning to tighten standards.

[size=4][b]given that the government was planning to tighten standards.

Which Government? Zhuahai, Zhongshan or HK? How clean is mainland fuel?

Which Government? Zhuahai, Zhongshan or HK? How clean is mainland fuel?

HK. The statement was made to commented the tighter/cleaner air quality standard in the future, not on the fuel standard.

but given the lower standard of fuel in China and the expected large increase in vehicles using mainland petrol on HK roads it could be a significant contributing factor to HK roadside pollution.

Well... if you want to travel to Zhuhai to fill up your tank and then come back half empty over all this distance, you can go for it.

But I think lorries are already doing that in Shenzhen. I'm not sure how much impact this would add.

Well... if you want to travel to Zhuhai to fill up your tank and then come back half empty over all this distance, you can go for it.

But I think lorries are already doing that in Shenzhen. I'm not sure how much impact this would add.

half empty plus the bridge toll. you may as well just fill the tank up in Tung Chung, and it's still cheaper.

Shenzhen and the vicinity has already tightened their diesel fuel standard to be closer to HK, and still being tightened as the years go. it's just not all about hong kong tighter standard, but the guangdong province is also a populated place.

Mud pits proposed near white dolphins
14 August 2009
SCMP

The government is having trouble finding ways to handle the huge amount of mud - equivalent to the size of 200 Olympic-sized swimming pools and partly contaminated - resulting from the construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

Measures under consideration include dumping less contaminated mud in mainland waters and using the rest to reclaim land for the new link road and border facility connecting to the bridge.

The government also proposes forming new mud pits near Brothers Islands - home to about 30 to 40 Chinese white dolphins in summer and autumn - prompting calls for less reclamation to minimise dredging work.

A total of 172 hectares of land will be reclaimed for building the bridge's local section and ancillary facilities, comprising the 130-hectare border-crossing facility, 23 hectares for a road linking the facility and the bridge, and 19 hectares for a road linking Tuen Mun and Chek Lap Kok.

In an environmental impact assessment report released for public consultation today, the government's consultant said the dredging works involved in building sea walls and a tunnel section of the link road would generate more than 500,000 cubic metres of marine sediment.

Sediment assessment found heavy metal content, including silver and nickel, in some of the mud that exceeded government standards.

WWF senior conservation officer Alan Leung Sze-lun said the government had consulted his group on ways to manage the mud from the bridge project.

"Instead of disposing of the mud in questionable ways, we think the government should scale down the reclamation," Mr Leung said.

WWF proposed building the link road connecting the bridge and border-crossing facility in the form of a low viaduct to avoid reclamation.

Cheng Luk-ki of Green Power warned that a number of dolphins were found dead during the reclamation for the new airport more than 10 years ago.

To mitigate the impact, the government's consultant proposed setting up a marine park at Brothers Islands and said construction work should be stopped whenever dolphins were spotted within 250 metres of the construction site.

Dolphin Conservation Society chairman Samuel Hung Ka-yiu urged the government to monitor work in Zhuhai and the Pearl River Estuary, where 1,500 dolphins had been recorded. The marine park proposed at the Brothers should also be several times larger than the reclaimed border-crossing facility.

A Transport and Housing Bureau spokesman said the project's uncontaminated and less-contaminated mud would be disposed of in mainland waters. It was looking for a suitable disposal site, and approval from the State Oceanic Administration would be sought.

Mud pits proposed near white dolphins
14 August 2009
SCMP

The government is having trouble finding ways to handle the huge amount of mud - equivalent to the size of 200 Olympic-sized swimming pools and partly contaminated - resulting from the construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

Measures under consideration include dumping less contaminated mud in mainland waters and using the rest to reclaim land for the new link road and border facility connecting to the bridge.

The government also proposes forming new mud pits near Brothers Islands - home to about 30 to 40 Chinese white dolphins in summer and autumn - prompting calls for less reclamation to minimise dredging work.

A total of 172 hectares of land will be reclaimed for building the bridge's local section and ancillary facilities, comprising the 130-hectare border-crossing facility, 23 hectares for a road linking the facility and the bridge, and 19 hectares for a road linking Tuen Mun and Chek Lap Kok.

In an environmental impact assessment report released for public consultation today, the government's consultant said the dredging works involved in building sea walls and a tunnel section of the link road would generate more than 500,000 cubic metres of marine sediment.

Sediment assessment found heavy metal content, including silver and nickel, in some of the mud that exceeded government standards.

WWF senior conservation officer Alan Leung Sze-lun said the government had consulted his group on ways to manage the mud from the bridge project.

"Instead of disposing of the mud in questionable ways, we think the government should scale down the reclamation," Mr Leung said.

WWF proposed building the link road connecting the bridge and border-crossing facility in the form of a low viaduct to avoid reclamation.

Cheng Luk-ki of Green Power warned that a number of dolphins were found dead during the reclamation for the new airport more than 10 years ago.

To mitigate the impact, the government's consultant proposed setting up a marine park at Brothers Islands and said construction work should be stopped whenever dolphins were spotted within 250 metres of the construction site.

Dolphin Conservation Society chairman Samuel Hung Ka-yiu urged the government to monitor work in Zhuhai and the Pearl River Estuary, where 1,500 dolphins had been recorded. The marine park proposed at the Brothers should also be several times larger than the reclaimed border-crossing facility.

A Transport and Housing Bureau spokesman said the project's uncontaminated and less-contaminated mud would be disposed of in mainland waters. It was looking for a suitable disposal site, and approval from the State Oceanic Administration would be sought.

Mud pits proposed near white dolphins
14 August 2009
SCMP

The government is having trouble finding ways to handle the huge amount of mud - equivalent to the size of 200 Olympic-sized swimming pools and partly contaminated - resulting from the construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

Measures under consideration include dumping less contaminated mud in mainland waters and using the rest to reclaim land for the new link road and border facility connecting to the bridge.

The government also proposes forming new mud pits near Brothers Islands - home to about 30 to 40 Chinese white dolphins in summer and autumn - prompting calls for less reclamation to minimise dredging work.

A total of 172 hectares of land will be reclaimed for building the bridge's local section and ancillary facilities, comprising the 130-hectare border-crossing facility, 23 hectares for a road linking the facility and the bridge, and 19 hectares for a road linking Tuen Mun and Chek Lap Kok.

In an environmental impact assessment report released for public consultation today, the government's consultant said the dredging works involved in building sea walls and a tunnel section of the link road would generate more than 500,000 cubic metres of marine sediment.

Sediment assessment found heavy metal content, including silver and nickel, in some of the mud that exceeded government standards.

WWF senior conservation officer Alan Leung Sze-lun said the government had consulted his group on ways to manage the mud from the bridge project.

"Instead of disposing of the mud in questionable ways, we think the government should scale down the reclamation," Mr Leung said.

WWF proposed building the link road connecting the bridge and border-crossing facility in the form of a low viaduct to avoid reclamation.

Cheng Luk-ki of Green Power warned that a number of dolphins were found dead during the reclamation for the new airport more than 10 years ago.

To mitigate the impact, the government's consultant proposed setting up a marine park at Brothers Islands and said construction work should be stopped whenever dolphins were spotted within 250 metres of the construction site.

Dolphin Conservation Society chairman Samuel Hung Ka-yiu urged the government to monitor work in Zhuhai and the Pearl River Estuary, where 1,500 dolphins had been recorded. The marine park proposed at the Brothers should also be several times larger than the reclaimed border-crossing facility.

A Transport and Housing Bureau spokesman said the project's uncontaminated and less-contaminated mud would be disposed of in mainland waters. It was looking for a suitable disposal site, and approval from the State Oceanic Administration would be sought.

Investors bet on future of Zhuhai
5 August 2009
SCMP

Shanghainese Vivian Guan and her husband travelled to Zhuhai in Guangdong on a sunny day two months ago - and shortly after became property owners in the city.

"We had no plan to buy any property before we travelled there. But after visiting my friend's place, we changed our mind," said Ms Guan.

"We like the development, we love the city environment and we are optimistic about the growth potential in the city."

The yoga teacher and her husband, who have been living in Hong Kong for three-and-a-half years, bought an 80 square metre unfinished flat in Huafa New Town, developed by the city's biggest developer, Huafa Industrial, for more than 8,000 yuan (HK$9,078) per square metre or less than 700,000 yuan.

"We plan to use it as a holiday home, and at the same time it can be a good investment," said Ms Guan.

This is their second mainland property; they bought their first in Ms Guan's hometown, Shanghai.

Ms Guan is an example of the Zhuhai property buyer who bets on the benefits likely to flow from closer economic ties in the Pearl River Delta region and further economic growth following the construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Construction of the bridge is expected to start by the end of this year or no later than next year.

On completion in 2016, it is expected to cut travelling time from Hong Kong to Macau or Zhuhai to about 30 minutes.

"Investors have started coming to the [Zhuhai] market in the past few months, betting on the future growth potential, " said Hermit Poon, a deputy general manager of Centaline China's Zhuhai branch.

A total of 1,655 uncompleted units changed hands in June, representing an increase of 43.6 per cent from May's 1,155 deals.

Purchases of secondary homes rose 9.6 per cent to 1,530 units, according to official figures. In the first half, there were 2,722 units on offer, of which 85 per cent were sold, according to website Soufun.com.cn.

The average selling price was 7,600 yuan per square metre.

Bolstered by the robust economy of Macau, Zhuhai's home prices surged a few years ago, but they slumped along with the nationwide correction last year.

The market started to pick up in the second quarter, with prices having risen more than 10 per cent so far, Mr Poon said.

Sales were active recently amid speculation that Zhuhai would strictly follow the rule on mortgage lending for second-home purchases, which require a minimum 40 per cent down payment on second homes.

"The most expensive properties in Zhuhai are located at the part of Lover's Road that is close to the Gongbei checkpoint," said Mr Poon.

Supply was limited, as there were rows of buildings already constructed along the road, a developer said.

One of the most expensive developments is Huafa Jade Peak, with units ranging in size from 299 to 334 square metres selling at an average of 25,000 yuan per square metre or at least 7.5 million yuan.

The development, located on the peak, captures a view of the South China Sea and the future Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Aaron Fischer, the head of CLSA's Asian property and gaming research, is also optimistic about Zhuhai's outlook, as it will benefit from the huge infrastructure projects.

The growing city also attracts overseas investors, with Singapore-listed Yanlord Land Group now building its 4 billion yuan Zhuhai Marina Centre, an integrated residential-commercial development.

It is located adjacent to the Zhuhai-Macau immigration checkpoint at Gongbei.

Rreef, the real estate and infrastructure management arm of Deutsche Bank, has formed a joint venture to build a US$225 million residential project in the city.

However, Mr Poon said not too many Hongkongers were buying in Zhuhai.

He predicted they would come when construction of the bridge had started.

Mr Poon suggested potential buyers look at properties below 10,000 yuan per square metre, sized between 130 sq metres and 150 sq metres, adding that demand for this type of property was greater.

Opinion : Future generations will be saddled with consequences of absurd bridge
30 August 2009
SCMP

I fully endorse the comments made by Steve Farrer in his letter ("Coastal route for bridge may save money but end up costing HK", August 23).

However, there is one point that I disagree with. He states: "We would like the bridge to be a great success."

The Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge was a ludicrous proposal from the outset, and now it appears to be set in concrete through the machinations of an uncaring administration.

I fear that there is nothing we can do. However, it will cost Hong Kong not only wasted billions of dollars on construction and maintenance, but in terms of damage to the environment and local ecology.

It will be a complete disaster.

I regret, Mr Farrer, that this white elephant will never be a "great success" and future generations in Hong Kong will be saddled with the consequences.

Yes, Legco's Finance Committee should certainly take a long hard look at everything connected with this proposal.

Realistically though, in the face of the Hong Kong government's intransigence, I fear that we will be stuck with this bridge and highway, and I agree that every effort should be made by those who are concerned to reduce the impact of this disastrous undertaking.

However, they should go to the top. The director of lands can do nothing - the Town Planning Board is nothing but a rubber stamp body. So they must set their sights on the bureau chiefs.

Anyone concerned about the bridge should approach any allies they may have in the Executive Council or the Legislative Council, or just tackle their local or functional Legco representative.

The route suggested by the Tung Chung group, to the north of Chek Lap Kok island, is a workable alternative and even more preferable if the highway is submerged in a tunnel.

Act now though, or the pristine, peaceful northwest Lantau coastline will be a thing of the past, along with the pink dolphins.

Gordon Andreassend, Tai Kok Tsui

Bridge over trade
28 July 2008
Journal of Commerce

One of the wonders of the world, the Great Wall of China, was built to keep invading hordes out. Two thousand years later, construction will begin on what might well qualify as a modern engineering wonder - a 22-mile bridge and tunnel complex linking Hong Kong with seaports across the Pearl River Delta.

The Zhuhai-Macau-Hong Kong Bridge is intended to boost the flow of trade and economic development into the region. It is a critical piece of a transportation infrastructure and logistics strategy designed to link the manufacturing centers of the western delta region with Hong Kong's financial, administrative and port logistics prowess.

The bridge has been an on-again-off-again proposal for the past 20 years. It is the brainchild of Hong Kong tycoon Gordon Ying Sheung Wu, chairman and managing director of Hopewell Holdings Ltd. and Hopewell Highway Infrastructure Ltd.

Wu, 72, has pushed since the 1980s for a modern transportation system to support China's manufacturers in the Pearl River Delta, which includes much of Guangdong province. The bridge is a centerpiece of his vision.

China's government endorsed the concept in 2003, but no firm financial plan for the estimated $4 billion to $6 billion project emerged until this year, when the three governments involved, the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau and the province of Guangdong, reached a financing agreement.

Under their arrangement, construction on the span will begin next year, with an estimated completion date of 2015. Hong Kong has agreed to pay 50.2 percent of the cost, while mainland China will take on 35.1 percent and Macau, 14.7 percent. Those percentages are based on the estimated benefits the bridge will bring to each jurisdiction. They will be responsible for construction and operation of boundary-crossing facilities and the connecting roads to the bridge within their territories.

Bids for the construction of the bridge are expected to be taken soon, with Wu's Hopewell firm likely to be a major participant. Hong Kong's China Communication Construction Co. and China Railway also are potential bidders.

The successful bidder will be granted a 50-year franchise to operate it as a toll bridge.

The Y-shaped bridge will span two man-made islands, allowing it to descend through an undersea tunnel to allow passage by ships. The concept is based on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel in Virginia. The two bridge segments of the six-lane Zhuhai-Hong Kong bridge, at 18.2 miles, will be about one mile longer than the shore-to-shore length of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge; the tunnel will be more than 4 miles long. Two artificial islands measuring slightly more than a half-mile each also will be built to join the two ends of the tunnel with the bridge segments. The tunnel will be laid at about 70 feet below the surface.

The bridge will reduce transit times for freight and passenger traffic across the Pearl River's mouth to less than 30 minutes. It's currently a one-hour ferry trip or a three-hour drive north to a narrower crossing point and then south to the ports of Macau and Zhuhai.

The project has been controversial in Hong Kong because of Wu's involvement and the double-edged sword of increased industrial development and the resulting congestion and environmental consequences.

"It will ease traffic between Hong Kong and the rest of Guangdong province," Stephen Wong, regional director, Americas, for the Hong Kong Trade Development Council, said at a recent seminar promoting trade between Hong Kong and Zhuhai.

Some take issue with that, however. "I'm concerned about this bridge; the scale of it concerns me," said Bill Barron of the Institute of Environment at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. "The purpose is to open the western delta to additional economic development, but no one is taking responsibility for adding a greater level of industrial output and pollution in the delta. It will encourage further growth in motor vehicle use in the region, and that pollution eventually will rival the level of air pollution from industrial development."

Barron said the bridge will accomplish its purpose of having factories in the western delta area that are not more than three hours away. "Infrastructure is enabling, but I'd like to see more talk about development in which we look ahead and see exactly what will be enabled."

Another academic, Jonathan Solomon, assistant professor of architecture at Hong Kong University, said the bridge "will be a good thing if done correctly. It has the potential to better organize the development of the western Pearl River Delta." While it's important for the project to begin, Solomon said it will "create greater traffic and environmental problems for the region."

He said freight traffic should move with a freight rail link on the bridge to the Port of Hong Kong. That idea has been proposed, but has not gained much traction. Wu recently dismissed a rail component as too costly, so it likely will depend on who wins the construction bid.

There are plans to improve the roads to the port's Terminal 9 container terminal, on Tsing Yi Island. A new road infrastructure will form a network across the port and connect to major Hong Kong highways and, eventually, the bridge. Furthest along is the Hong Kong Link Road, which will connect the port and Hong Kong International Airport to the bridge.

For Hong Kong and its port, which slipped to third behind Singapore and Shanghai in world container volume last year, the bridge is both a symbolic and physical manifestation of efforts by the city and the port to regain pre-eminence through closer economic and trade integration with the rest of the Pearl River Delta region's ports and its population of about 60 million.

"Firming up trade and logistics alliances with Zhuhai and other western Pearl River Delta ports will enhance our trade model," Wong said.

Hong Kong's container volume during the first half of this year rose nearly 5 percent to 12.1 million TEUs, a sprightlier pace than last year's, but still lagging Singapore by a wide margin. Singapore reported an 11.5 percent increase in container traffic through June to 15.0 million TEUs.

Hong Kong is expected, however, to remain a key logistics hub. "We believe its gateway status is assured for many years to come," said a recent white paper from NYK Logistics Hong Kong. The report notes that China's Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement with Hong Kong "has opened up the mainland considerably for logistics companies."

The governments of Hong Kong and the mainland are investing in more infrastructure to improve connectivity of the city with the mainland - and the bridge is a good example of that, the NYK report said.

For Zhuhai, the importance of closer economic and logistics integration with Hong Kong is also high. It is trying to make its mark in the region as a relatively new city, established in 1979. It became a special economic zone the following year. Its population is now nearly 1.7 million, and it has the longest coastline within the Pearl River Delta. Its industrial output last year increased by 18.7 percent to $33.1 billion; main manufacturing industries include electronics, electric appliances, petrochemicals, electric machinery and bio-medicine.

"It's an attractive, competent, clean and young city," said Li Ying, deputy secretary-general of the Zhuhai Municipal People's Government.

She said the two cities will complement each other. In the western Pearl River Delta, "Zhuhai and other ports will be bases for logistics and export manufacturing; in the eastern delta, Hong Kong will be the high-end technology and financial and administrative services center," Li said.

For Zhuhai and other Pearl River Delta cities, including the port city of Shenzhen north of Hong Kong, and in the western Delta, manufacturing centers such as Foshan, Jiangmen and Zhongshan, "the overarching conclusion is that the economic interaction between Hong Kong, Macau and the Pearl River Delta Economic Zone makes it difficult to treat them as entirely separate economies," a recent report from Invest Hong Kong said.

The report, titled "the Greater Pearl River Delta," was written by Michael J. Enright and Edith E. Scott of Enright, Scott & Associates. "One must view the region as a whole if one is to understand its strengths and potential," the report said. "This is the emerging economic reality."

In Brief
EXCERPT
11 September 2009
SCMP

A Tung Chung resident plans to launch a judicial review over the lack of a Chinese-language version of the environmental impact assessment report on the connecting roads and border crossing of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, the Civic Party says. The resident said the lack of a Chinese-language version deprived him of the chance to comment on the report's contents. A Highways Department spokesman said there was already a Chinese-language version of an executive summary of the report and the public was welcome to visit its office for an explanation of the report.

Mega bridge project gets 'green' light
September 13, 2009
http://news.gov.hk/en/category/environment/090910/features/html/090910en04005.htm


Measures proposed for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge's construction and operation have been deemed environmentally acceptable, the project's chief engineer Aaron Bok says.

He spoke with news.gov.hk after consultants completed the project's environmental impact assessment for the Highways Department

Mr Bok describes the planning process as highly complicated, but notes the bridge will offer significant social and economic benefits to Pearl River Delta cities.


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y163/Caelusxxx/001-1.jpg


"To design and construct these mega-scale projects while satisfying a tight timeframe and budget will be a big challenge for the designer and contractor," he said.

When complete in 2015-16, the bridge will significantly reduce transportation time and costs for travelers and goods shipments on roads between the regions.

The Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link together with the Tuen Mun Western Bypass will provide direct connections between Shenzhen Bay Port, the northwest New Territories, Hong Kong International Airport and North Lantau - serving as an alternative route to the airport apart from the North Lantau Highway.


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y163/Caelusxxx/002-1.jpg


Time savings

Travel time from Kwai Chung to Zhuhai will be slashed from three hours to an hour, and a journey from Hong Kong airport to Shenzhen Bay Port will be cut from 35 minutes to 20.

The environmental impact assessment covered the 130-hectare artificial island that will house the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities, the 12-kilometre Hong Kong Link Road and the 9km Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link.

Mr Bok said the construction - which will create 18,000 jobs in Hong Kong alone - will be "highly complicated" as it will involve reclamation and bridge construction over water. The construction sites will also be within the airport area and outside the Tung Chung New Town.

"We are highly concerned about the needs and worries of the Tung Chung residents, green groups and other members of the public," he said.

"To provide opportunities for the public to get involved in the planning of the mega-scale projects, public engagement of this project has been carried out since September 2008."


http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y163/Caelusxxx/003.jpg


Strategic site selection

The consultants considered many factors before selecting a site for the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities which will be at the northeast waters off the Airport Island. Combined with the bridge's main section, the Hong Kong Link Road, the Tuen Mun Western Bypass and the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link, it enables the formation of a strategic road network linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai, Macau and Shenzhen.

"Situated next to the airport, it will serve as a strategic transportation hub and create considerable synergy," Mr Bok said.

This location will have less adverse impact on the Pearl River Delta's hydraulic, terrestrial and marine ecology, and water quality when compared to other sites considered such as the San Shek Wan, west and southwest of Chek Lap Kok, Tung Chung Bay and Tai Ho Bay.

Reclamation for the artificial island can be merged with the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link landfall, to reduce the amount of seabed dredging and seawall construction.

If the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Airport Rail Link is implemented, underground station can be located on the artificial island, bolstering the projects' synergy.

Public concerns addressed

Mr Bok said plans for the Hong Kong Link Road have also been altered to accommodate Tung Chung residents' needs after they expressed grave concern on visual impact brought by a sea viaduct at the Tung Chung seafront.

Instead of a sea viaduct, plans call for a tunnel and at grade road along the eastern shore of Airport Island - with the tunnel section running under Scenic Hill.

"The sea viaduct near Sha Lo Wan has been aligned to the side of Airport Island as far as possible along the Airport Channel, and the viaduct span will be maximised as Sha Lo Wan residents were also concerned about the visual impact of the Link Road."

Air, noise impact reduced

Air and noise pollution are also of concern to nearby residents. Consultants conducted a robust quantitative air-quality assessment that simulated the regional air-quality effects in 2031, taking into account pollution sources in the Pearl River Delta such as power stations, the airport, marine vessels and road emissions.

They also assessed vehicular emissions in North Lantau and on Airport Island. The combined results indicate the cumulative air-quality impacts at these sites will comply with the legislation.

Construction-noise assessment results indicate that - after implementing good site practices, and quiet plant and mitigation measures - the noise impact will comply with the stipulated criteria.

"The artificial island will be 2km from the Tung Chung town centre, which is approximately the distance between Central and Jordan; while the Hong Kong Link Road will be 700m away. The traffic noise impact on Tung Chung by 2031 will be within the limits of the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance," Mr Bok added.

Dolphin conservation key

The assessment also highlighted the potential impact on the Chinese White Dolphins' habitat.

"The government attaches great importance to preserving the dolphin ecology when planning the projects. Our aim is to minimise any impact on these creatures," Mr Bok said.

Dolphin experts' in-depth study suggests the location of the artificial island northeast of Chek Lap Kok is best as it is some distance away from the dolphin's active region in waters to the west.

Engineers will take measures during construction to lessen the impact on the dolphins. These include avoiding percussive piling, using methods to minimise noise transmitted through the dredging and reclamation barges, and controlling construction vessels' speed limits.

"We will also adopt a dolphin watching plan. The Government will designate a marine park at The Brothers after the completion of the projects to enhance conservation of the marine habitat," he said.

To avoid affecting the marine traffic of the busy water route Urmstom Road, the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link tunnel between Tuen Mun and the Hong Kong Border Crossing Facilities, about 5km long, will be built using the tunnel-boring-machine method rather than an immersed tube. This will also reduce seabed dredging and hence minimise effect on marine ecology.

"Though tunnel boring machine has been used in Hong Kong and world wide for years, this is the first time we deploy this construction method under the seabed at about 20m below sea level," he said.

"We target to commence the reclamation work in the third quarter of 2010."

:)

Deal signed for the detailed design of the reclamation works of the Hong Kong - Zhuhai - Macao Bridge Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Government Press Release

The Highways Department and Ove Arup and Partners Hong Kong Ltd signed an agreement for the detailed design of Hong Kong - Zhuhai - Macao Bridge (HZMB) Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities (HKBCF) Reclamation Works today (September 17). This signifies that the Hong Kong project for HZMB has reached a new stage.

The HZMB is of particular strategic importance to the further economic development of Hong Kong, Macao and the Western Pearl River Delta region.

The HKBCF artificial island will have a reclaimed area of about 150 hectares to provide mainly for passenger clearance and cargo processing facilities, including 20 hectares of land required for Tuen Mun – Chek Lap Kok Link (TM-CLKL). Following the completion of the preliminary design, detailed design and ground investigation will successively commence.

Apart from HKBCF, projects related to the HZMB also include the Hong Kong Link Road connecting to the HZMB main bridge, the TM-CLKL and the Tuen Mun Western Bypass. These projects will enable the formation of a complete strategic road network linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai, Macao and Shenzhen, thereby further enhancing the transportation and aviation hub status of Hong Kong.

The HZMB HKBCF reclamation works are scheduled to commence in the third quarter of 2010.

港珠澳大橋介紹影片

http://www.hklr-hkbcf.com/big5/web/public/cav/English.htm

港珠澳大橋港方口岸　勘探工程展開

　　計劃於2016 年啟用的港珠澳大橋，港方口岸區開展勘探工程；本港路政署表示由於受制於高度限制及海上淤泥，預期工程有一定困難。運輸及房屋局局長鄭汝樺就表示，會舉辦設計口岸比賽，得獎作品會用作口岸設計參考。

記者程泰祖報道

　　港珠澳大橋香港口岸的國際概念設計比賽及勘探工程開展禮昨天舉行，鄭汝樺表示，大橋工程規劃進展良好，希望明年開展口岸的設計工作。她重申，香港口岸是大橋工程香港段非常重要的部分，將配合香港接線、屯門至赤鱲角連接路和屯門西繞道，建立一個策略性 的道路網絡，進一步提升香港作為運輸及航空樞紐的地位。

　　她相信，大橋通車後珠三角西岸會納入香港三小時車程內可達的範圍。往來香港與珠江西岸陸路客運及貨運，無論時間及成本，都會大大降低。此外，大橋對香港和內地與澳門間的經濟、旅遊、金融、物流，以至文化交流等都會帶來莫大的裨益。

概念設計比賽接受報名

　　水域勘探工程開展後，工程人員開始測試河床地質及抽取淤泥樣本，路政署預計明年第三季可展開填海工程；路政署總工程師卜國明指在機場範圍填海有難度，主要是因為機場受制於航空高度限制，施工期間要特別留意，另外機場東面亦有淤泥需要處理。港珠澳大橋香港口岸位於赤鱲角機場東北面水域的填海區，日後島上會有出入境及海關設施。

　　至於當局會舉辦概念設計比賽現正接受報名，截止報名日期為明年2月8日。有關比賽及報名詳情已載列於比賽網頁www.hkbcf-design.hk。得獎名單預計於明年5 月公布，勝出的作品將會為香港口岸的詳細設計作參考。

　　根據廣東省交通運輸廳在本月初通過港珠澳大橋主體工程初步設計預審，首階段工程即連接澳門及珠海的珠澳人工島口岸，將於下周二即本月15 日正式動工興建。

港赴珠海僅需30 分鐘
　
　　港珠澳大橋全長約39. 6 公里，當中28 公里是橋樑、6. 7 公里乃海底隧道，並設有兩個人工島，其中港方口岸的人工島面積 約100 公頃。估計到2015 至16 年大橋落成時，由本港到珠海的車程將縮短至約30分鐘。人工島上除檢查大樓外，亦包括無人駕駛列車，接載旅客由檢查大樓至機場登機。整個大橋造價超過720 億元人民幣，由中央以及粵港澳三地政府共同出資興建，計劃收費50 年。

World's longest sea bridge may boost S. China economy
15 December 2009

HONG KONG, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Construction of the world's longest sea bridge linking Hong Kong to China and Macau began on Tuesday, in a bid to bolster the integration and future growth of the Pearl River Delta, China's stricken economic powerhouse.

A manufacturing hub churning out almost a third of China's exports, the PRD has come under pressure to upgrade itself as an export and services hub after the financial crisis exposed shortcomings and low-end, labour intensive factories closed down.

With land in Guangdong, particularly the PRD, becoming increasingly scarce and costly, the 50-km (31-mile) bridge is expected to bring substantial economic benefits to Guangdong's relatively undeveloped western reaches. With 35 km to be built over water, it will be the world's longest sea bridge.

Expected to be completed in 2015/2016, the bridge will cost 73 billion yuan ($10.7 billion) though Hong Kong expects it to generate $HK45 billion ($5.8 billion) of economic benefits within 20 years of entering service.

In a blueprint for the region released in January, Beijing's top economic planning agency said the PRD, encompassing Hong Kong and the gaming centre of Macau, could become one of the world's leading economic hubs by 2020. But the study criticised its low overall level of competitiveness and innovation.

"Through a more convenient and fast transport network, Hong Kong's financial, tourism, trade and logistics and professional services can become better integrated with the Pearl River Delta and the surrounding areas," Hong Kong's Chief Executive Donald Tsang, said at the ceremony launching the project.

Green groups like the World Wide Fund for Nature oppose the project on environmental grounds, saying construction could devastate marine ecosystems and endanger the rare Chinese white dolphin found in the estuarine waters of the Pearl River.

Officials, however, have pledged to protect ocean ecology and fishery resources.

"We will control the construction noises and turbidity of seawater, and prevent oil pollution," Xinhua news agency quoted Zhu Yongling, an official in charge of construction, as saying.

It looks like the Zhongshan - Shenzhen bridge will get the go-ahead very soon and should be finished before the mega trophy bridge. It will be Cheaper, faster and more convenient.

It looks like the Zhongshan - Shenzhen bridge will get the go-ahead very soon and should be finished before the mega trophy bridge. It will be Cheaper, faster and more convenient.

I see I see.......but that's for going to the Mainland?

If we are talking about travel between Macau and Hong Kong, then the bridge is designed for that.

I think many have noticed by now that once the bridge is up, you can expect that there will obviously be price competition between driving using the bridge and with water transportation vehicles such as boats (hello Turbojet).

In the mean time, Stanley Ho and his Shun Tak company need not worry but when year 2016 comes, he better get ready for some price competition if he wants his boat service business to continue on. :D

P.S.
Oh and I left air transportation out because IMHO, Macau airport sucks.

I mean, you have Grand Lisboa, Venetian, City of Dreams Complex, Waldo, Wynn, MGM, Sands and all other high-end, world class and modern structures and shit that are truly sophisticated..............but meanwhile, the airport IS NOT sophisticated.

Lots of money going into construction of high-tech and high-class (like One Central Macau which just opened recently) and plans for the upcoming rail transport system and all that...........but the airport looks so fucking old......

If I remember right, Macau economy is as big (if not bigger) than what Hong Kong has and yet Hong Kong has the more world-class, high-tech, modern airport.

My suggestion: Use that money/funds to build a classier and more prestigious airport that can be said as WORLD-CLASS (cause last time I entered that Macau airport, it felt like I was in some provincial airport in a third-world country).

So yeah, improve and modernize Macau airport. Otherwise, you can forget about me even thinking of setting foot on your airport (I'd rather spend extra and take my return flight in Chek Lap Kok, HKIA instead)

:ohno:


/rant over

would that make the already congested airspace even more congested?
i'm happy with HKIA serving macau :P

It looks like the Zhongshan - Shenzhen bridge will get the go-ahead very soon and should be finished before the mega trophy bridge. It will be Cheaper, faster and more convenient.

Hmm ... thought Beijing was going to axe that project. But then, Hong Kong's bridge is closer to Zhuhai, so will likely have an advantage for that SEZ. With so much sea traffic between Hong Kong and Macau, I wonder if this will turn out to be a magnet for buses plying between the two cities in the future?

Hmm ... thought Beijing was going to axe that project. But then, Hong Kong's bridge is closer to Zhuhai, so will likely have an advantage for that SEZ. With so much sea traffic between Hong Kong and Macau, I wonder if this will turn out to be a magnet for buses plying between the two cities in the future?

IMO, buses will probably take over the water jet.
Buses can serve area outside Sheung Wan and Tsim Sha Tsui.
Buses are more comfortable in some way, especially on windy wavy day.

The only down side of buses are they have less capacity than the boat.

Perhaps if the bridge users had to pay the actual cost of construction and maintenance then the fleet of boats would still be cheaper. As the tax payer is subsidising the bridge users it will probably be cheaper to drive with a car full of passengers.

Perhaps if the bridge users had to pay the actual cost of construction and maintenance then the fleet of boats would still be cheaper. As the tax payer is subsidising the bridge users it will probably be cheaper to drive with a car full of passengers.

Yup, this would most likely occur.

As mentioned, it appears that the rule here would be that land transport is always cheaper than water transportation. So therefore, once Turbojet realizes that lesser people are riding on their HK<->Macau boat services since the bridge is already constructed, they would have to lower prices in order to compete (if they want their boat business to continue).

It's kinda like Second Link between Singapore and Malaysia. If there were no land connection, then majority of people traveling between SG and MY would still be riding on planes. Now with a land-based connection, this is not the case and thus SG<->MY air routes are forced to compete (as well as for people who are in a hurry)

Kinda like that :)

Perhaps if the bridge users had to pay the actual cost of construction and maintenance then the fleet of boats would still be cheaper. As the tax payer is subsidising the bridge users it will probably be cheaper to drive with a car full of passengers.

Will there be a toll?

Will there be a toll?

Yes, various toll by vehicle type.
Passenger car is something like HK$100+

Yes, various toll by vehicle type.
Passenger car is something like HK$100+

In that case, yes the rates are indeed competitive.

If you look at the rates of Turbojet for instance, the pricing starts as low as HKD$134 per passenger.

http://www.turbojet.com.hk/eng/schedule/prd.html

Since the toll rates for the bridge are priced per vehicle, then the more passengers you have, the more value you get for the money spent on toll rate.

Indeed, when the bridge is fully constructed, you can really expect price competition between the bridge and the boat operators :)

This is a win-win for cheaper fares and better services :)

Zhuhai plan to build several government subsidised state of the art container ports. Do we need the bridge?

Zhuhai plan to build several government subsidised state of the art container ports. Do we need the bridge?

How about a state of the art international cargo airport?

Gaungzhou is developing a state of the art airport hub - didn't FedEx switch to there recently?

Gaungzhou is developing a state of the art airport hub - didn't FedEx switch to there recently?

DHL is in HK, too, so?
And is HK closer to Zhuhai, or GZ once the bridge is built?

Gaungzhou is developing a state of the art airport hub - didn't FedEx switch to there recently?

I believe they moved their hub from the Philippines to Baiyun.

ys - they had a choice of HK, SZ or GZ. they choose GZ for lower costs and being closer to the majority of the customers. Many people specific Fedex in Guangzhou as it is usual 1 day quicker than using a express firm that uses HKIA

Dragages joins fray for deals in Big 10 building projects
12 January 2010
SCMP

Competition to win contracts in the city's 10 major infrastructure projects is heating up with French construction giant Dragages the latest company to throw its hat in the ring.

Dragages Hong Kong is spending millions of dollars to tender for more than HK$10 billion worth of contracts up for grabs as part of the government's economic stimulus package.

Dragages, established in Hong Kong in 1955, is part of the Bouygues Group, one of France's largest conglomerates. The group had sales of €32.7 billion (HK$368.11 billion) and net profit of €1.5 billion in 2008.

The 10 infrastructure projects, which are expected to cost about HK$250 billion, are designed to help tackle the impact of the global financial crisis on the city. Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen announced in October 2008 he was accelerating the construction of the projects, which are expected to take five or six years to complete.

"Dragages definitely hopes to be involved in the projects and are bidding for over HK$10 billion of contracts in the coming year," said Nicolas Borit, Dragages Hong Kong managing director.

"We don't expect to win all of them, as the competition is very strong. Given the size of the projects coming up, there will be work for everyone."

Dragages' competitors include Hong Kong construction firms including Gammon and Hip Hing.

Dragages is spending millions of dollars on the tendering process, which could cost between HK$5 million and HK$15 million for each bid, Borit said. "We do invest a lot of money in the bidding exercises. All of these large tenders cost a fortune," he said.

Putting up a tender proposal for many of these infrastructure projects required a team that included designers, architects and engineers, he said.

Dragages has almost 1,000 employees in Hong Kong. If it wins contracts from the 10 infrastructure projects, its headcount might increase close to its level in the 1990s, when it had more than 2,500 staff in the territory, said Borit.

However, he admitted the cost of labour was likely to soar with the huge demand from the projects, as it did in the 1990s, which was another intense phase of construction in Hong Kong with projects such as Chek Lap Kok airport.

"In the 1990s, the cost of labour rose tremendously in Hong Kong. For some trades where there were shortages, it almost tripled in peak times," Borit said.

Dragages' first involvement in the 10 infrastructure projects came at the end of last year, when a joint venture that it led won a contract from the MTR Corp. The deal, worth HK$1.6 billion, is to build tunnels between Sheung Wan and Sai Ying Pun stations on the West Island Line. The other two members of this joint venture are Maeda and Bachy Soletanche Group.

Dragages is also tendering for other contracts in the projects including the Express Rail Link between Hong Kong and Guangzhou,

the redevelopment of the former airport at Kai Tak and the South Island Line connecting Central with Sha Tin. It also hopes to tender for the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge, and is interested in the construction of the Hong Kong section.

"Dragages has been in Hong Kong for 55 years. The history of Dragages is totally related to the infrastructure development of the city. Every time Hong Kong has done a big step in infrastructure development, we have been part of it in a big way. So we plan to be there again," said Borit.

Dragages' first project in Hong Kong was the construction of the runway at Kai Tak airport during the 1950s. In the 1970s, it was involved in building the first container shipping terminal at Kwai Chung and also the Admiralty and Central MTR stations.

Dragages also took part in the construction projects at Chek Lap Kok, including Cathay Pacific Airways' headquarters, the airline's catering centre and the Haeco maintenance hangars.

Tung Chung woman files legal challenge to bridge
24 January 2010
South China Morning Post

A Tung Chung resident has called for a judicial review of the decision to grant environmental permits for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, saying impact assessments ignored pollution issues and used faulty methodology.

Fu Tung Estate resident Chu Yee-wah filed the review application in the Court of First Instance last week. She is calling for Director of Environmental Protection Anissa Wong Sean-yee to review her decision to approve the bridge's environmental impact assessments last autumn, and to grant environmental permits for its construction and operation.

The Environmental Protection Department said it would investigate the case in consultation with the Department of Justice.

Construction of the bridge is scheduled to begin next year and be completed by 2016.

The estimated cost of the entire project, including the bridge and connecting facilities, is 72.9 billion yuan (HK$83 billion).

The filing criticises reports drafted by consultants regarding the crossing facilities, North Lantau Highway connection, and the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok link road - a highway connecting Tuen Mun with Hong Kong International Airport and Tung Chung.

"No sensible person in the position of director, and who applies his mind to the director's duty {hellip} could possibly have accepted the [environmental impact assessment] that concluded there would be no residual air quality impact whatsoever resulting from the operation of the projects," the filing said.

The reports failed to consider the bridge's impact on public health, the filing said. "Without the evidence of a quantitative risk assessment of the impact on public health, the director could not have lawfully granted an environmental permit under the [Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance]," it said.

Some of the criticisms in Chu's filing were based on opinions from experts in the University of Hong Kong's department of community medicine.

According to them, the reports ignored pollution factors such as fine suspended particles and sulphur dioxide, which the filing described as a major health hazard.

The experts cited in the filing said an assumption in one of the reports that the project would not generate ozone was invalid and unscientific.

"There is no question that ozone, as a pollutant, will be generated from the nitrogen oxides and volatile organic compounds emitted from road vehicles and construction equipment involved in this project, and from traffic during the operation of the bridge," the filing said.

Assessors should have taken air quality readings from a roadside monitoring station, rather than a general station that was 21 metres above ground in Tung Chung, the filing said.

The reports were conducted with reference to the city's 1987 air quality objectives, which the experts claimed were obsolete and overdue for revision. To show that the bridge would meet the objectives, the studies used 2015 as a baseline year to assess the project's impact. By 2015, government measures to reduce air pollution would have taken hold, meaning the project would have enough "headroom" to meet the objectives.

The experts said use of a baseline year was wrong, since it is based on speculation about future air quality.

Chu, 65, said in the filing that she lives in an area that the project will directly affect. She claimed the construction and operation of the project would affect her health, given her existing medical problems such as diabetes and a heart condition.

The project is already under fire from community and green groups for the danger it could pose to white dolphins in the area, and the disturbance it would generate for about 30,000 Tung Chung residents.

Tung Chung woman files legal challenge to bridge
24 January 2010
South China Morning Post

A Tung Chung resident has called for a judicial review of the decision to grant environmental permits for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, saying impact assessments ignored pollution issues and used faulty methodology.
...
The project is already under fire from community and green groups for the danger it could pose to white dolphins in the area, and the disturbance it would generate for about 30,000 Tung Chung residents.

I think anyone interested in this project should also take a look at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chesapeake_Bay_Bridge-Tunnel) located in Maryland, US. 23 miles long and made up of both tunnel and bridge segments.
http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=37.029966,-76.085815&spn=0.01,0.01&t=h&q=37.029966,-76.085815

HK border for cross-delta bridge targeted for 2016
11 December 2009
South China Morning Post

The Hong Kong border facilities for a multibillion-dollar bridge across the Pearl River Delta are expected to be completed within seven years, a transport official says.

Ground exploration works for the border facilities, which will be linked with the planned Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, and an international contest to give ideas for designing the facilities both kicked off yesterday.

Highways Department chief engineer Bok Kwok-ming said reclamation for building the border facilities would begin in the third quarter of next year. "We're by no means lagging behind as we keep an eye on the timetables of the three jurisdictions," he said. "Construction of the facilities is expected to finish in 2015 or 2016."

Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng said the start of the ground investigation works was an important milestone for the bridge project.

Cheng said she hoped the International Design Ideas Competition would draw innovative ideas and concepts to make the border facilities a new landmark in Hong Kong. The winning ideas will be used as reference for the detailed design of the facilities.

The border facilities - which will be completed in time for the bridge - will fit in with the Hong Kong Link Road, Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link and Tuen Mun Western Bypass to form a strategic road network. Cheng said the network would further boost Hong Kong's status as an international transport and aviation hub.

"The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge will serve not only as a regional strategic route but also gear to help enhance the economic development and competitiveness of the Pearl River Delta region," she said.

The Highways Department is jointly organising the designing contest with the Architectural Services Department, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department, the Environmental Protection Department, Institute of Architects, Institution of Engineers, Institution of Highways and Transportation, Institute of Landscape Architects and the Institute of Planners.

Professionals in architecture, planning and engineering as well as the general public worldwide are welcome to contribute their ideas and concepts. There are two entry groups for the competition: the professional group and the open group.

Round-the-clock border posts for Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge
10 March 2010
SCMP

Border posts at the three ends of a multibillion-dollar highway across the Pearl River Delta will be open around the clock, although that might not be possible immediately after the bridge's opening in 2016.

An agreement signed by authorities from Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau released yesterday said the three governments would determine the best date for 24-hour operation to start.

The move is seen as another measure to boost use of the bridge, which after a 20-year delay in construction, is facing competition from other road networks and infrastructure - including a soon-to-be-built link that connects Shenzhen and Zhongshan.

It has been promised that the toll will be kept at the minimum needed to repay a 22 billion yuan (HK$25 billion) bank loan, interest, and the bridge's repair and maintenance expenses. The governments are not supposed to make a profit from the toll, which means it may eventually be reduced.

The agreement also specifies the rights and responsibilities of the three governments concerning the construction, operation, maintenance and management of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge's main structure.

As reported by the Post, Guangdong will replace Hong Kong as the chair of a committee that will make major decisions on the 37.73 billion yuan main bridge, which is over mainland waters. The province will also nominate the head of a bureau under the committee to oversee daily operations.

The committee will comprise nine members - three from each government. Each team will nominate its own leader, and the leader or an appointed substitute must attend committee meetings to ensure no parties are left out of major decisions.

In the event of a split in opinion, the governments will seek consensus through negotiation. The agreement bans the parties from resolving differences via legal action.

If disagreements on matters such as the setting of tolls and the number of permitted vehicles cannot be resolved, each government will report the matter to a high-level body comprising Beijing representatives.

One billion yuan will be set aside from the project's capital fund for the setting up of the bureau that oversees daily operations. It will also be responsible for raising loans to cover any shortfall in capital. The three governments will each pick a deputy chief to the bureau.

The tendering of the main construction work will be regulated by mainland laws, which means firms without a permit from mainland authorities cannot bid. However, the contracts worth more than 400 billion yuan may fall under the scrutiny of the World Trade Organisation and should be opened to all international bidders. Local engineers said they suspected most major contracts would go to mainland firms.

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港珠澳大橋香港部份工程 - 第二部份
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Here is the English version:
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A bridge too far? Not for Hong Kong
Vancouver Sun
19 April 2010

HONG KONG - Even in this city-state's record of extraordinary feats of civil engineering, a project which started last December is remarkable.

It is to build a bridge almost 50 kilometres across the Pearl River delta from Hong Kong to the city of Zhuhai adjoining the former Portuguese colony of Macau.

The bridge, costing about $7 billion and which for much of its length will soar 200 metres above the waterway leading to some of China's busiest ports, is expected to be completed in 2016.

It will cut the road time from Hong Kong to the western shores of the Pearl River delta from more than four hours now to a little more than an hour.

More than that, it will bind Hong Kong into the rapidly expanding network of superhighways in China that are already edging into Southeast Asia.

The bridge will also be one of the most visible and concrete statements of the city's return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 after nearly 150 years of British colonial rule.

Under the handover agreement, Hong Kong is to remain a separate jurisdiction retaining much of its British administrative and judicial heritage for 50 years. But nearly 13 years after its return to Chinese sovereignty Hong Kong's integration into China is evident and the bridge will be another assertion of that reality.

While the bridge has its critics, who range from environment advocates to business people concerned it will allow foreign investors to speed through Hong Kong without stopping, Eva Cheng, the territory's secretary for transport -- the equivalent of minister -- said in an interview the project has been undertaken only after 47 studies.

The benefits, she said, far outweigh any possible downsides.

The bridge, she said, will stimulate Hong Kong investment in the industrial development of surrounding Guangdong province, which already accounts for 40 per cent of China's gross domestic product.

And as the Hong Kong end of the bridge will take off from the artificial island housing Chek Lap Kok airport -itself one of the city's engineering marvels -it will further encourage its development as a regional and international transportation hub.

The regional dominance of Hong Kong's new airport will be further enhanced with the construction by 2016 of a road tunnel from Chek Lap Kok under the western approaches of Victoria Harbour to Tuen Mun on the north shore. This will complete the vastly improved road links from Hong Kong to the manufacturing cities of Guangdong province, such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou.

The bridge, Cheng said, will have three lanes in each direction and is forecast to be carrying close to 60,000 cars and trucks a day as soon as it is opened.

The structure has been designed to have as little environmental impact as possible. That means, in part, planting as few supporting pylons as possible into the waters of the delta, home to about half of China's remaining population of some 2,000 white dolphins.

Some encouragement has been gained from the experience with the construction of Chek Lap Kok airport, whose man-made island was in an area frequented by the dolphins.

Cheng said that the dolphins disappeared while Chek Lap Kok was being constructed, but have now returned to the waters around the airport. The expectation is any disruption to the dolphins' habits while the bridge is being built will be similarly brief.

Hong Kong civil engineers have to deal with challenging geography and climate. The city is already home to the world's longest two-storey suspension bridge, which allows traffic to continue flowing during the frequent typhoons, and the bridge to Zhuhai will be similarly robust.

It has been designed to withstand earthquakes up to a magnitude of eight, the most damaging intensity on the Richter scale, typhoons and the impact of a 300,000-tonne vessel hitting a support pylon.

But the bridge is not only a bridge. It is also a tunnel.

The Pearl River delta is the gateway to many of the busiest and most important ports in China. If the bridge impeded that traffic it would nullify its purpose.

So two islands are being constructed west of Hong Kong and about seven kilometres apart. A tunnel will be dug between the two islands, taking the highway under a channel wide and deep enough to allow passage for the largest ships and highest volume of maritime traffic conceivable.

There will be a toll for using the bridge; Cheng said it has not yet been decided how much that will be. The aim will be to set a rate which provides enough income to repay the bank loans for construction as well as maintenance and running costs without being so high that people are discouraged from using it.

She said she thinks the toll will be in the range of the equivalent of $13 for cars and $26 for trucks.

At that rate there may be an added benefit for Hong Kongers struggling with the city's outrageous housing costs.

It will be possible to live in more affordable western Guangdong province and commute to work in Hong Kong.

A bridge too far? Not for Hong Kong
Vancouver Sun
19 April 2010

It will be possible to live in more affordable western Guangdong province and commute to work in Hong Kong.

Now see that might be a problem. If bridge travel is made too cheap and encouraged, creating a suburb of sorts will create horrible congestion on that bridge. What's even worse is that this is a bridge/tunnel - not a highway where if congested people can use local roads to get around it...unless someone invents flying cars.

Now see that might be a problem. If bridge travel is made too cheap and encouraged, creating a suburb of sorts will create horrible congestion on that bridge. What's even worse is that this is a bridge/tunnel - not a highway where if congested people can use local roads to get around it...unless someone invents flying cars.

For most Hong Kong people, it will be long before the west side of PRD become a good place to live and commute. Unless you work at the airport, it will still be 2-hour from the city centre where most people work. Owning a car is still going to be expensive with the HK$200 toll each day to just get to Lantau, extra $35 crossing the Lantau.

Congestion on this bridge and the Lantau Link are probably the last thing I worry. They are actual expressways with fairly high capacity.

The additional traffic in down town areas where capacity has been saturated for many many years is more of a concern. The current cross boundary routes are hardly near capacity but the Shenzhen Bay Bridge still does not have good access on the Shekou side. It is not likely the bridge will fully utilized for some years to come given the evidence of over estimating and over delivering on road capacity.


Building extra express roads and not having congestion management in Down Town areas is very un-joined-up thinking.

For most Hong Kong people, it will be long before the west side of PRD become a good place to live and commute. Unless you work at the airport, it will still be 2-hour from the city centre where most people work. Owning a car is still going to be expensive with the HK$200 toll each day to just get to Lantau, extra $35 crossing the Lantau.

Congestion on this bridge and the Lantau Link are probably the last thing I worry. They are actual expressways with fairly high capacity.

The biggest winner is likely bus service to Macau, although I don't think time-wise it'll result in much savings. But imagine regular bus service to Macau every 10-15 minutes like an "A/E" service.

If the TD had a pollution per passenger Km policy rather than just property + trains policy then long haul cross boundary buses would probably not be as efficient as ferries and so should get less preferential treatmen, but building a huge bridge requires traffic so...

If the TD had a pollution per passenger Km policy rather than just property + trains policy then long haul cross boundary buses would probably not be as efficient as ferries and so should get less preferential treatmen, but building a huge bridge requires traffic so...

But your assumption doesn't quantify the logistic part of the bridge which significant shorten the truck journey between both sides of PRD, and therefore truck emission in the region.

The biggest winner is likely bus service to Macau, although I don't think time-wise it'll result in much savings. But imagine regular bus service to Macau every 10-15 minutes like an "A/E" service.

Idk...HK-Macau ferry is pretty fast.

But your assumption doesn't quantify the logistic part of the bridge which significant shorten the truck journey between both sides of PRD, and therefore truck emission in the region.

Surely building an efficient large deep water port in Zhuhai would reduce emissions even more?

Surely building an efficient large deep water port in Zhuhai would reduce emissions even more?

The only fault with the bridge is the absence of the rail link.

You criticize everything the Hong Kong Government does for the heck of it. In real life, people probably even hate you because you have nothing good to say about everything. You just vent all your negative energy on here because you are more or less walled in by your own poisonous negativity.

Surely building an efficient large deep water port in Zhuhai would reduce emissions even more?

Proof? Or just your words?

Having a large efficient port on the western side of the PRD would give more options for shipping but it might dilute the hub effect HK/SZ currently achieve

The port at Nansha was due to be expanded but it seems to of been put on hold. Perhaps there is not demand for it given the rise of Shenzhen's Yantian port.

The only fault with the bridge is the absence of the rail link. .

Agreed. But is there a place to build railway station, railway junction, and railway yard in Macau? Or just make the Tung Chung Line become Hong Kong - Macau Line.

Having a large efficient port on the western side of the PRD would give more options for shipping but it might dilute the hub effect HK/SZ currently achieve

The port at Nansha was due to be expanded but it seems to of been put on hold. Perhaps there is not demand for it given the rise of Shenzhen's Yantian port.

EricIsHim - the answer is "just words".

or viable private investment has been curtailed due to massive public sector investment. Who would build a new port when the Government is buuilding a bridge and will heavily subsidise it

港珠澳橋口岸環保概念奪魁


【本報訊】港府預計於今年第三季聘請顧問公司詳細設計港珠澳大橋香港口岸，當局早前舉辦比賽，邀請世界各地參賽者提供香港口岸的設計概念，得獎名單昨日公布，不少得獎作品均在設計中運用環保概念，如盡量採納天然陽光、風力等減少用電量，更有得獎設計提議在建築物上種有植物天幕，為繁榮的口岸提供氧氣令空氣更清新。


港設計師獲專業組冠軍
香港口岸設計比賽分專業組及公開組。專業組冠軍為三名香港設計師組成的隊伍，作品名為「同一屋簷下」，寓意港澳回歸後與內地居民生活於同一屋簷下，關係緊密。

他們建議在口岸的出入境大堂上蓋裝設多用途天幕，上面有因應溫度而開關的天窗，增加自然通風，減少使用冷氣。天幕上亦有多條裝有海藻的水管，當受陽光照射會進行光合作用產生氧氣，氧氣會經過水幕噴灑往下方，減低車輛廢氣所產生的空氣污染。

公開組冠軍隊伍則來自內地設計師，他們設計的口岸多採用流線型曲線，令口岸的外形與海浪在視覺上融為一體。設計中私家車或貨車的清關廣場設於地庫，可騰出更多地面空間。

路政署總工程師卜國明表示，是次比賽成本費為四百多萬元，吸引世界各地一百六十多個隊伍參與。得獎作品的設計概念，會供將來獲聘的顧問公司在設計香港口岸時詳細參考，預計今年第三至第四季展開招標，而香港口岸的填海工程造價建議，可望在今年內提交予立法會審批，獲批後隨即開展工程。
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Nice! The open tender designs are all better than the "professional" designs

A bridge built for two systems
9 April 2010
Copyright 2010 China Daily Information Company

Two days ago in Beijing we signed the Framework Agreement on Hong Kong-Guangdong Co-operation that is key to implementing the Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta (PRD). This outline was unveiled by the Central People's Government last year with the goal of establishing the PRD as one of the most competitive regions in the world by the year 2020.

What does this framework agreement mean for Hong Kong?

First and foremost, this landmark accord will serve people and companies of both Hong Kong and Guangdong, and promote mutual development. In other words, it will help to dismantle the invisible wall between us while preserving the integrity of "One Country, Two Systems" and the Basic Law.

A major underlying principle of the accord is "market leads, government facilitates". Removing unnecessary obstacles will facilitate the free flow of people, goods, capital and information. People will have greater choices in the way they work and live. There will be more opportunities for companies to thrive and grow.

In the coming decade, the framework agreement will have far-reaching implications for Hong Kong's relationship with Guangdong, in terms of transport infrastructure, cross-boundary movements, environmental protection, and support to businesses.

A number of mega cross-boundary infrastructure projects are at various stages of development. The coming decade will see the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, and two mainland highways linking Hong Kong with the PRD. Meanwhile, planning is in full swing for an additional control point at the eastern boundary and a high-speed railway connecting Hong Kong and Shenzhen airports .

Combine these with the strategic road and railway systems in Hong Kong and you have an extensive, seamless network with the various airports, waterways and ports in the PRD, making it possible to travel from Hong Kong to major PRD cities within one hour.

Software is equally important. The two sides will study various options to streamline immigration and customs clearance to facilitate self-service passenger clearance, synchronised customs declarations and clearance for goods, single platform for vehicle clearance, mutual recognition of customs inspections, and so on. These measures will go a long way in enhancing cross-boundary efficiency.

Further, we will create a single platform for Octopus and its Guangdong counterpart to ensure acceptance of the card after crossing the Shenzhen River. We also aim to relax the licensing arrangement for cross-boundary vehicles including private cars so that driving your own car to the mainland becomes a viable option. We will also make every effort to lower cross-boundary telecom charges.

In anticipation of more Hong Kong residents choosing to work and live in the PRD, the framework agreement proposes a host of support measures, including:

exploring the possibility of allowing Hong Kong technicians to obtain international, mainland and local qualifications by sitting for a single examination;

Hong Kong residents receiving the same medical privileges as their compatriots in Guangdong; improving the transfer of patients between the two medical systems; encouraging Hong Kong's medical sector to provide high quality medical services in Guangdong; supporting Hong Kong social welfare organisations to operate various social services in Guangdong; promoting exchanges and sharing of teaching resources in primary and secondary education; allowing more students to study in the universities of the other side; re-examining existing welfare policies concerning Hong Kong residents in Guangdong with regard to the implications of the various co-operation initiatives.

The PRD will be a role model for "green living" for the rest of China. We will take the lead by setting the most stringent air quality indices and emission standards. A cross-boundary, 400-kilometer corridor of natural preserve will act as a green buffer for the region. Resources will be committed to improving water quality, and policies implemented to promote environmental industries and the use of clean and renewable energy.

The framework agreement also contains myriad business-friendly initiatives to support economic co-operation. These include: financial services - promoting exchanges and co-operation of financial markets, institutions, talents; supporting the development of off-shore Renminbi business in Hong Kong; market access - further opening up the Guangdong market under the CEPA framework and various pilot schemes.

This will facilitate Hong Kong services providers (including professionals) to operate in Guangdong, support Hong Kong services industry in moving up the value chain, and encourage companies to jointly tap the business opportunities arising from services outsourcing. Hong Kong companies will also be able to establish their distribution and logistics networks in the mainland to further penetrate the domestic market; e-business - promoting mutual recognition of electronic signature certificates and enhancing common e-business technologies such as accreditation, online payment, and major standards; technical standards - collaborating on technical standards with a view to developing a set of common standards for services industries; manufacturing industries - supporting the restructuring and upgrading of the processing trade.

Innovation and technology will play a crucial role in this upgrading exercise, which aims to propel the PRD region up the international league of technology and innovation hubs. The agreement promotes commitment of funding and equipment to technological co-operation through favorable policies, commercialisation of Hong Kong R&D breakthroughs in Guangdong, attracting international high-tech companies to conduct R&D activities in the PRD, and stepping up intellectual property rights protection.

The framework agreement gives the blueprint and roadmap for forging a closer partnership between Hong Kong and Guangdong. The two sides will now press ahead with its implementation. In particular, we will: act on the key action areas for 2010 as agreed between the two governments; complete the planning studies jointly undertaken by the two sides - quality living, infrastructure, tourism, action plan of the Bay Area of the Pearl River Estuary; take forward the co-operation initiatives relating to selected regions in the PRD, in particular the planning and development of the Qianhai area in Shenzhen; work closely with central authorities to incorporate the major features of the framework agreement in the National 12th Five-Year Plan starting next year.

We are turning a new chapter in our collaboration with Guangdong. With determination and concerted efforts, it will be just a matter of time before we tear down the invisible wall that stands in the way of joint development.

No plan to develop large-scale commercial at HK end of massive bridge: official

HONG KONG, May 19 (Xinhua) -- An official with the HK government said Wednesday the city didn't have a plan to develop large-scale commercial facilities at the HK end of the massive Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge based on environmental protection and financial considerations.

Acting Secretary for Transport and Housing of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, Yau Shing-mu, made the stance in his written reply to a question raised by a lawmaker of HKSAR Legislative Council.

Yau said the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of the massive bridge will be located at the waters off the north-east of the HK International Airport on the Lantau Island, and reclamation works will start in the third quarter of this year.

The HK Boundary Crossing Facilities of the bridge will become a strategic transportation hub on the west of Hong Kong, and its traffic and economic benefits will radiate to nearby areas and will significantly boost the economic development capability of these areas, he said.

With reclamation works, which calls for environmental protection and financial considerations, it is necessary to minimize the size of the reclamation, which is currently estimated to be about 130 hectares, Yau said.

Moreover, since the boundary facilities is located in the vicinity of the Hong Kong International Airport, its buildings need to comply with the Airport Height Restrictions between 25 to 50 meters Principle Datum.

The official said the Transport and Housing department would take into account the connecting transport services at the crossing facilities, so that the future massive bridge can effectively promote the economic development of the nearby areas.

The under-construction bridge will be the world's longest cross- sea bridge, which links China's southern economic hub of Guangdong Province to Hong Kong and Macao regions.

The entire project was estimated to cost almost 73 billion yuan (10.7 billion U.S. dollars), which would be shared by authorities on the mainland, and in Hong Kong and Macao.

Construction began in December last year. It was scheduled to be put into service in 2016.

Agreed. But is there a place to build railway station, railway junction, and railway yard in Macau? Or just make the Tung Chung Line become Hong Kong - Macau Line.

I am sceptical about the bridge, vis-a-vis economic viabilties? and most importantly impact to the environment.

Ferries are doing a good job. Effort should be directed at further improving this.
Building a transit system in Macau asap and connecting this to the ferry terminal will probably be more impactful in improving accessibility to Macau.

If at all, extend the Tung Chung MTR line in HK to Macau.

Do you still need the bridge?

I am sceptical about the bridge, vis-a-vis economic viabilties? and most importantly impact to the environment.

Ferries are doing a good job. Effort should be directed at further improving this.
Building a transit system in Macau asap and connecting this to the ferry terminal will probably be more impactful in improving accessibility to Macau.

If at all, extend the Tung Chung MTR line in HK to Macau.

Do you still need the bridge?

Well, Tung Chung Line to Macau needs a bridge as well.

This will be a undersea tunnel, like the Chunnel.

This will be a undersea tunnel, like the Chunnel.

That will cost a lot more than a bridge, making it even more unviable.

Not necessariy.

The cross section of a tunnel is a lot less than a 6 land highway.

But, if it is economicall not viable, then don't do it. Just improve the ferry links, which in any case is not optimised yet. This is the whole idea.

Macau cannot afford to have more cars on its road.
Macau is not spoilt by cars yet.
Don't make it another car dependent city.
In any case, it cannot afford land to build roads and carparks.

The priority for Macau is to have a good rapid transit system. around the entire city. given its small size and high density, this is entirely doable.

Macau can then become the model of how a car free city can be.

Do not destroy Macau.

if you really need to drive to Macau, start a vehicular ferry. Like Dover-Calais, or the Penang ferry in Malaysia.

The fact that this has not happened shows that there is little demand.

Not necessariy.

The cross section of a tunnel is a lot less than a 6 land highway.

But, if it is economicall not viable, then don't do it. Just improve the ferry links, which in any case is not optimised yet. This is the whole idea.

Macau cannot afford to have more cars on its road.
Macau is not spoilt by cars yet.
Don't make it another car dependent city.
In any case, it cannot afford land to build roads and carparks.

The priority for Macau is to have a good rapid transit system. around the entire city. given its small size and high density, this is entirely doable.

Macau can then become the model of how a car free city can be.

Do not destroy Macau.

if you really need to drive to Macau, start a vehicular ferry. Like Dover-Calais, or the Penang ferry in Malaysia.

The fact that this has not happened shows that there is little demand.

How can digging under the sea be cheaper than putting concrete poles in there and slapping a prefabricated deck on top? We clearly see this difference in the HSR link to Guangzhou. The cost skyrocketed because of the big tunnel that will comprise most of the HK section.

Then, don't dig the tunnel.
Just use improve the ferries.
Use the money to provide a good transit network in Macau.

Then, don't dig the tunnel.
Just use improve the ferries.
Use the money to provide a good transit network in Macau.

AFAIK, they are working on a rail transport network over there. I did some searching and I found a preliminary draft on how the route would look like:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/94/Macau_Light_Rail_Stations_2.png/465px-Macau_Light_Rail_Stations_2.png

Now regarding your comment on improving the ferry services. IMO, competition between service providers (like Turboject and New World First Ferry for example) is already present..........but the addition of this bridge will DRASTICALLY IMPROVE competition as boat service providers will now compete against road-based transport.

If you can look back at previous figures, the price or amount (or toll) that you have to pay for using the bridge is based per vehicle basis (whereas the boats change your per person). And even on that basis, the charge per vehicle for using the bridge is cheaper than what you pay per person to get on the boat.

This improves pricing competition to offer same or better services at lower costs.

This is somewhat similar to transportation between Singapore and Malaysia. In the old days, you can only travel between the two countries by plane or by boat.

But nowadays, there are land-based connections (including the latest one which is the Second Link Highway). Now airline companies have had to lower prices to keep up with the influx of travellers using the Second Link Highway as it is a cheaper service.

So there, IMHO, this new and upcoming Bridge is indeed a welcome. Majority of people would appear to agree on this :)

If the cost to build the bridge was given to ferry operators how many years of free tickets could they offer?

If the money used to build the cross harbour tunnels had been given to ferry operators, how many years of free round-the-clock and rolling cross-harbor rides could ferry operators provide?

Then, don't dig the tunnel.
Just use improve the ferries.
Use the money to provide a good transit network in Macau.

Hong Kong and Zuhai are going to foot the majority of the construction costs. The bridge is built to connect the whole Hong Kong with the entire western PRD and Macau. The whole world does not revolve around the needs of Macau.

The bridge is intended to open up the western part of the delta, so it's not primarily geared towards improving our connections with Macau. We're looking at industrializing the Chinese section, and bring the goods to the world via HK.

What if HK Gov bought a lage plot of land in Zhuhai and gave it to the HK owned port companies instead? Would save building the bridge. The Macau Bridge is obviously not viable as all loans have been arranged by Chinese SOE banks not the market. Again why is the HK Gov not just be open and honest and say the project is not viable but not doing it is worse. Perhaps the people of HK would believe their Governments promises on more complex matters if they wre more transparent with simple infrastructure projects?

Again why is the HK Gov not just be open and honest and say the project is not viable but not doing it is worse?

Does it really make that much a difference when the government is saying the bridge is used to secure the economic future of Hong Kong?

Being given dodgy data and being told to believe it and if you suggest it is wrong you are anti-government is not really a method to develop harmony in society

We all know that "harmony" in Asia really means "shut up."

Every single government on this planet stands by its own forecasts like mad.

Would this bridge have a rail line on it?

Would this bridge have a rail line on it?

No rail on the bridge - was planned at first but it was dropped.

Is this project cast in stone already? Physical work started? When is it completing?

Is this project cast in stone already? Physical work started? When is it completing?

Yes, under construction as we speaking. Scheduled complete date: 2015/2016.

An interesting article from an American magazine, not the final design or anything real, just information for this project.

Ingenious Flipper Bridge Melds Left-Side Drivers With Right-Side Drivers
BY SUZANNE LABARRETue Jun 15, 2010

Hong Kong drives on the left side of the road, mainland China on the right. So how do you prevent crashes when driving between them?

http://images.fastcompany.com/upload/Dia1____JPG_800x600_q85.jpg

One of the most vexing aspects of traveling between mainland China and Hong Kong is the car travel: People in the former drive on the right side of the road; people in the latter drive on the left (a vestige of the British empire).
So to quell confusion at the border and, more importantly, to keep cars from smashing into each other, the Dutch firm NL Architects proposed a brilliant, simple solution, the Flipper bridge.

http://images.fastcompany.com/upload/Dia15____JPG_800x600_q85.jpg

The bridge does exactly what the name suggests: It flips traffic around. The key here is separating the two sides of traffic, using a figure-eight shape. One side of the road dips under the other, funneling cars that were traveling on the left to the right (and vice versa), without forcing them to encounter head-on traffic at an intersection. The bridge makes what should be a disorienting switch exquisitely easy. Check out PixelActive's 3D model of the traffic flow below:

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Say, for instance, you're coming from Zhuhai. As you cross the bridge on the right into Hong Kong, the highway slopes downward to let you pass under the oncoming traffic. As it slopes back up, you reemerge on the left. No cars barreling straight at you. No concrete labyrinth to maneuver through. No sweat (and, ostensibly, no blood).

http://images.fastcompany.com/upload/Dia17____JPG_800x600_q85.jpg

The bridge is part of a master plan NL Architects floated for an ideas competition on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, a complex of bridges and tunnels connecting the west side of Hong Kong to mainland China and Macau. (As clever as their idea was, NL Architects, alas, didn't prevail; first prize in the professional category went to a proposal called "Under One Roof" that unctuously billed itself as "China, Macau and Hong Kong as one big family," all but ensuring a win.)

http://images.fastcompany.com/upload/Dia13____JPG_800x600_q85cropped.jpg

In some ways, though, perhaps the Flipper bridge may be too good of an idea. One of the great paradoxes of driving, as Tom Vanderbilt highlights in his terrific book Traffic, is that dangerous roads are actually safer precisely because they're perceived as dangerous; that is, they make drivers more vigilant and therefore less likely to get into a collision. (Which explains the seemingly inexplicable appeal of European roundabouts.)

http://images.fastcompany.com/upload/Dia3____JPG_800x600_q85.jpg

In 1967, Sweden switched over to right-side driving, after years on the left, and everyone steeled themselves for a spike in accidents. Instead, incidents plummeted. Facing apparent peril, people became more cautious behind the wheel (and others probably stayed off the road altogether).
Sure, the Flipper bridge seems like a fail-safe idea. But what if a driver, lulled by the easy left-right transition, forgot that the change over had even been made? You can bet a horrifying accident would result. Sometimes, a little danger is a good thing.



Source: http://www.fastcompany.com/1660258/traffic-report-how-to-switch-to-the-other-side-of-the-road-without-causing-a-70-car-pileup?partner=yahoobuzz#dsq-comments

Is this a bridge or a reclamation project?

Will it be a bridge with no traffic?
Few cars will be eligible to use mainland link
HK-ZUHAI BRIDGE
Enoch Yiu
Jul 19, 2010

If you build it, will the cars come? Imagine: it's a Friday night in 2016 and the long-awaited 37.73 billion yuan (HK$43.23 billion) Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge has been completed.

A banker plans to pick up his clubs after work and drive to Zhuhai for a round of golf, stopping in Macau on the way for a quick meal. It should only take 30 minutes to motor from his office in Central to the mainland city - a trip that used to take three to four hours by ferry.

But first he needs the right kind of car. And there aren't a lot of those around. Right now, only 20,500 private cars, 950 coaches and 15,900 goods vehicles in Hong Kong could make the trip; vehicles that don't have cross-border licences issued by Guangdong are not allowed over the border. Even fewer mainland drivers - a few thousand at most - are qualified to drive directly from Zhuhai to Hong Kong.

The goal of the bridge was to integrate the three economies and allow people to travel easily between Hong Kong and the mainland.

An initial 13,000 to 20,000 vehicles were expected to use the link every day - to eventually reach 60,000 cars daily by 2035. But it's likely the bridge will see just a fraction of that traffic. If the cross-border licence system continues as it is, and the tight restrictions for left-hand-drive cars entering Hong Kong also remain, it could end up being severely underused.

Hong Kong inherited from its former British masters a system based on right-hand-drive vehicles, while those on the mainland are left-hand drive. The bridge is designed for left-hand-drive cars but Hong Kong currently does not allow left-hand-drive vehicles unless the Transport Department provides a waiver - only ambulances and diplomatic cars usually enjoy such privileges.

The Hong Kong government mooted a possible relaxation of the regulations early last year by issuing some short-term or one-off cross-border licences. Now it's planning a trial scheme for ad hoc licences under a quota system for private cars at the Shenzhen Bay Port.

A Transport and Housing Bureau spokeswoman said about 22,000 private cars hold cross-boundary permits, and it plans to allow more in the future. The trial scheme will be introduced for private cars in Hong Kong first, followed by private cars in Guangdong, she said, adding that details were still being discussed.

"The trial scheme, if successful at the Shenzhen Bay Port, will pave the way for full-scale implementation at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge in the future," she said.

But David Tung, a broker, said it was "extremely difficult" to obtain a licence. "The application procedures are complicated and the criteria are so tough that I would say it is almost impossible for an ordinary person to succeed," he said. Tung runs his own brokerage and is a director of Hong Kong and mainland firms. Even with his background, he is not qualified for a cross-boundary licence.

The minimum requirement is to be either a big investor, a big charity donor, or to have political connections. The investment amount depends on whether it is in the country or city. For rural areas, a firm must invest HK$3.2 million and have paid tax of 150,000 yuan a year to apply for a cross-border licence for its first car.

It needs to invest at least HK$40 million for a second car and HK$80 million for a third.

The threshold is higher if the company is investing in a city area, where a licence for a first car requires an investment of HK$8 million, rising to HK$64 million for a second car and HK$160 million for a third.

For individual applicants, only those who hold a political position in the Guangdong provincial government or who have donated 10 million yuan or above are considered.

Tung said he had been advised to get a cross-border licence second-hand or from the black market, but he dismissed the idea as too expensive and possibly illegal. A licence on the black market could cost HK$400,000 or more.

"The government should make it easier for everyone to apply for a cross-border licence. It is important for closer economic ties between Hong Kong and the mainland," Tung said.

Bank of East Asia (SEHK: 0023) senior adviser, Chan Tze-ching, also believes the cross-border licence system needs to be relaxed. "However, we should also recognise there are a lot of difficulties such as the fact that the mainland is left-hand drive while Hong Kong is right-hand drive. All the road signs and road designs are different," Chan said. "If there is any relaxation, the government must do it carefully."

Paul Chan Mo-po, the legislator for the accountancy sector and a keen motorist, said Hong Kong should follow Europe's lead, where it is easy to drive across the continent - switching between right-hand-drive Britain and mostly left-hand-drive Europe. "When I travel to Europe, I can hire a car in Paris and then freely drive around to other European countries and even go to Britain," he said. "If it can be easily done in Europe, why not in Hong Kong?"

A Hong Kong government official who is familiar with the issues said the difficulties in obtaining cross-border and short-term licences were being studied. Challenges included the fact that a large number of mainland cars could clog Hong Kong's already congested roads, and vice versa. This would lead to traffic jams and pollution problems, said the official, who declined to be named.

There are also security and smuggling concerns. As such, the official said even if the licence regime was relaxed, it would be subject to a quota.

Construction of the bridge, funded by the governments of the three jurisdictions, will start next year and is expected to be completed in 2016.

According to the Highways Department, the project's economic rate of return for Hong Kong is 8.8 per cent over a 20-year period, or 12 per cent over 40 years.

In April, the Hong Kong government signed a framework agreement with the mainland on Hong Kong and Guangdong co-operation. It is expected to be a key plank of Beijing's plan to establish the delta as one of the world's most competitive regions by 2020. The agreement points to the bridge allowing drivers to travel from Hong Kong to key mainland cities within an hour, and mentions a relaxation of licensing for cross-border vehicles, including private cars. But, three months on, there has been no progress on the licensing issue. Driving to Zhuhai in 30 minutes after work may be a bridge too far.

It looks to me that the flipping bridge design is an expensive option for something that could be achieved way cheaper...

It looks to me that the flipping bridge design is an expensive option for something that could be achieved way cheaper...

The Dutch doesn't design highways that have to switch side!!!

Will the bridge include rail access?

It doesn't seem like a good idea to flood traffic into Macau, given that it's not a very big place.

Will the bridge include rail access?

It doesn't seem like a good idea to flood traffic into Macau, given that it's not a very big place.

The proposal to include rail was axed, but plenty of ferries run to Macau (many times an hour), so we already see a flood of people reaching Macau from Hong Kong.

Then there are plenty of mainland visitors coming in from Zhuhai.

The Dutch doesn't design highways that have to switch side!!!

??

??

The flipping bridge design was done by a Dutch architect firm according to the article.

The flipping bridge design was done by a Dutch architect firm according to the article.

Yeh, but I mean it seems to be expensive

Spending the public's money on trophy projects that look grandiose is what the current administration sees as a way of raising the international profile of Hong Kong. A similar approach is obviously taken across the border and in North Korea they still have public parades to raise national pride. It is just big government at its best.

Yeh, but I mean it seems to be expensive

Yeh, but I mean the Dutch doesn't have highways that flips side, so the Dutch architect doesn't know how to do it cheaply. :lol:

Blueprint 世紀藍圖 港珠澳大橋 part 1

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Blueprint 世紀藍圖 港珠澳大橋 part 2

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An interesting article from an American magazine, not the final design or anything real, just information for this project.



Source: http://www.fastcompany.com/1660258/traffic-report-how-to-switch-to-the-other-side-of-the-road-without-causing-a-70-car-pileup?partner=yahoobuzz#dsq-comments

Read this article or something similar to it a while back too, not that ingenious,

The bay bridge in SF (and I suppose every double decker bridge in the world) does this to merge the bridge with the rest of the highway. Just make sure one of the ends are reversed, and *gasp* suddenly its ingenious.

Bridge bears cost of dolphin care
26 July 2010
SCMP

The cost of building the bridge linking Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau will increase by 3.67 billion yuan (HK$4.2 billion) after more measures are implemented to protect the endangered Chinese white dolphins that live in the Pearl River estuary.

The extra cost is mainly because of measures that would allow the contractor to continue work between April and August - the peak breeding season for the mammals - to ensure the bridge can be completed on time.

It is not yet clear whether the cost has already been reflected in the earlier estimate of a total of HK$37.7 billion and how it would affect toll levels on the road.

Under the agreed financial arrangement, Hong Kong will contribute about HK$7.6 billion to the project, while the rest will come from the mainland authorities, the Macau government and the private sector.

The Guangdong Daily yesterday reported that if construction was banned during the five-month period, it would mean the 29.6-kilometre bridge - most of which falls within the mainland's jurisdiction - would open in 2019 and not 2016 as planned.

The report said an experts' meeting was held by the Ministry of Agriculture, which manages a dolphin reserve in the estuary, to reassess banning the work.

The meeting was also attended by officials from the Highways Department and the mainland in charge of the bridge work and the reserve.

Measures to be introduced to better protect the dolphins include adjusting the bridge design to reduce the number of foundations across the estuary, where up to 2,500 dolphins live.

Marine work would also be minimised by making as many bridge parts as possible on land.

Other measures include boat speed control and increased monitoring of the dolphins during construction.

Samuel Hung Ka-yiu, chairman of the Hong Kong Dolphin Conservation Society, said he would prefer the work to continue from April to August to speed up the building.

"Banning construction during the period is not realistic. The earlier the work is completed, the less boats will be there too," Hung said.

A spokesman for the Transport and Housing Bureau yesterday said it would gather information about the reports and follow up the issue.

Ex-SHKP chief wants rail link added to bridge
26 July 2010
SCMP

To prevent the HK$43 billion Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge from being underused and to shorten the project's payback period from 48 years to 19 years, Walter Kwok Ping-sheung, the ousted chairman of Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), said a railway system should be added into the construction of the bridge.

After the debate on the construction of a new high-speed rail link from Hong Kong to Guangzhou and Shenzhen was settled earlier this year, Kwok (pictured) said it was time to look westward.

"The high-speed railway will be built on the east side while there are indeed more opportunities to develop on the west as land is much cheaper there." As a result, Kwok advises the central government to consider incorporating a railway into the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, which will connect Hong Kong to the other two cities.

Citing a recent article in the South China Morning Post, Kwok also expected to see the bridge being underused.

The Post reported on July 19 that the existing cross-border vehicle licence regulations - which require a company to invest at least HK$8 million in a mainland city or HK$3.2 million in a rural area to be qualified to apply for a cross-border licence - will adversely affect car flow.

"Macau will also constrain the number of cars crossing its border as it is such a small island." Kwok said.

He said casino tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun, the chairman of Shun Tak Holdings, would surely welcome his suggestion to build the railway even though it would affect Shun Tak's 24-hour ferry services between Hong Kong and Macau. "Mr Ho would be thankful for the proposal. He would earn much more from having more casino visitors than selling a ferry ticket for HK$200."

Kwok supported his proposal by citing a financial analysis conducted by consultancy firm GHK in 2008.

Comparing three different scenarios for the bridge project - dual three express lanes, dual two lanes plus railway, and railway only - GHK said the railway-only model has the shortest payback period - 17.4 years. The dual lane plus railway model would need 19.1 years and the dual three-lane model would need 48.6 years.

The study assumes there is an extension of the Airport Express line to carry passengers on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau link and the fare for a one-way trip is HK$200.

After decade-long negotiations, the three local governments kicked off the construction of the 35-kilometre bridge in mid-December last year when the central government gave the green light. The existing plan includes a six-lane express road connecting the bridge from Hong Kong's Lantau Island to Macau and Zhuhai. According to official estimates, an initial 13,000 to 20,000 vehicles are expected to cross the bridge every day on its completion in 2016, and traffic will eventually grow to 60,000 cars a day. Yet, only 22,000 private cars currently hold cross-border licences.

On another issue, Kwok urged the Hong Kong government to think twice before resuming building flats under the Home Ownership Scheme. "An HOS flat is selling at 70 per cent of the market price. Why do taxpayers have to subsidise HOS flat buyers for that 30 per cent discount?" he said.

If people cannot afford a flat in the urban district, Kwok said, they could consider SHKP's Yoho Town in Yuen Long for about HK$5,000 per square foot on the secondary market, or Tin Shui Wai, where a flat costs only about HK$3,000 per square foot.

Ex-SHKP chief wants rail link added to bridge
26 July 2010
SCMP

To prevent the HK$43 billion Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge from being underused and to shorten the project's payback period from 48 years to 19 years, Walter Kwok Ping-sheung, the ousted chairman of Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP), said a railway system should be added into the construction of the bridge.

After the debate on the construction of a new high-speed rail link from Hong Kong to Guangzhou and Shenzhen was settled earlier this year, Kwok (pictured) said it was time to look westward.

"The high-speed railway will be built on the east side while there are indeed more opportunities to develop on the west as land is much cheaper there." As a result, Kwok advises the central government to consider incorporating a railway into the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge, which will connect Hong Kong to the other two cities.

Citing a recent article in the South China Morning Post, Kwok also expected to see the bridge being underused.

The Post reported on July 19 that the existing cross-border vehicle licence regulations - which require a company to invest at least HK$8 million in a mainland city or HK$3.2 million in a rural area to be qualified to apply for a cross-border licence - will adversely affect car flow.

"Macau will also constrain the number of cars crossing its border as it is such a small island." Kwok said.

He said casino tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun, the chairman of Shun Tak Holdings, would surely welcome his suggestion to build the railway even though it would affect Shun Tak's 24-hour ferry services between Hong Kong and Macau. "Mr Ho would be thankful for the proposal. He would earn much more from having more casino visitors than selling a ferry ticket for HK$200."

Kwok supported his proposal by citing a financial analysis conducted by consultancy firm GHK in 2008.

Comparing three different scenarios for the bridge project - dual three express lanes, dual two lanes plus railway, and railway only - GHK said the railway-only model has the shortest payback period - 17.4 years. The dual lane plus railway model would need 19.1 years and the dual three-lane model would need 48.6 years.

The study assumes there is an extension of the Airport Express line to carry passengers on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau link and the fare for a one-way trip is HK$200.

After decade-long negotiations, the three local governments kicked off the construction of the 35-kilometre bridge in mid-December last year when the central government gave the green light. The existing plan includes a six-lane express road connecting the bridge from Hong Kong's Lantau Island to Macau and Zhuhai. According to official estimates, an initial 13,000 to 20,000 vehicles are expected to cross the bridge every day on its completion in 2016, and traffic will eventually grow to 60,000 cars a day. Yet, only 22,000 private cars currently hold cross-border licences.

On another issue, Kwok urged the Hong Kong government to think twice before resuming building flats under the Home Ownership Scheme. "An HOS flat is selling at 70 per cent of the market price. Why do taxpayers have to subsidise HOS flat buyers for that 30 per cent discount?" he said.

If people cannot afford a flat in the urban district, Kwok said, they could consider SHKP's Yoho Town in Yuen Long for about HK$5,000 per square foot on the secondary market, or Tin Shui Wai, where a flat costs only about HK$3,000 per square foot.

^^^
He is free to make his own opinion and suggestion and I will respect his points-of-view.

However in my humble opinion

A rail link for this bridge is something that I see as an option.....but not a dire necessity. To put it extremely, you will die without food, water and oxygen BUT you will still be alive even if there is no rail link in the HK-Macau-Zhuhai bridge (geong-zhu-oh-tai-kyu) ;)

The current ferry service already has competition between boat operators (i.e. Turbojet, New World First Ferry, CotaiJet, etc.) and prices for each ticket are relatively cheap and reasonable. With the bridge, pricing for water transport services will drop in order to compete with the cheaper toll rates that the bridge is offering.

I guess what I'm saying is: If you want a rail link, okay........but I don't think people should cry over spilled milk if there won't be one.

The ferry boat services provide 24-hour transport between Hong Kong and Macau and outlying territories (within the Pearl River Delta area). As such, what the bridge provides is AN ADDED BONUS.

Regardless of what it offers, it's still a win-win in my humble opinion.

Two cents :)

@hkskyline
What do you think hehe? :)

Yeh, but I mean the Dutch doesn't have highways that flips side, so the Dutch architect doesn't know how to do it cheaply. :lol:

lol I see what you mean now! :lol:

^^^
He is free to make his own opinion and suggestion and I will respect his points-of-view.

However in my humble opinion

A rail link for this bridge is something that I see as an option.....but not a dire necessity. To put it extremely, you will die without food, water and oxygen BUT you will still be alive even if there is no rail link in the HK-Macau-Zhuhai bridge (geong-zhu-oh-tai-kyu) ;)

The current ferry service already has competition between boat operators (i.e. Turbojet, New World First Ferry, CotaiJet, etc.) and prices for each ticket are relatively cheap and reasonable. With the bridge, pricing for water transport services will drop in order to compete with the cheaper toll rates that the bridge is offering.

I guess what I'm saying is: If you want a rail link, okay........but I don't think people should cry over spilled milk if there won't be one.

The ferry boat services provide 24-hour transport between Hong Kong and Macau and outlying territories (within the Pearl River Delta area). As such, what the bridge provides is AN ADDED BONUS.

Regardless of what it offers, it's still a win-win in my humble opinion.

Two cents :)

@hkskyline
What do you think hehe? :)


I actually see the eventual demise of the ferry service once the bridge opens. I expect bus service much like the airport ones to be set up and head to Macau from all parts of the city. Thus, the rail link is not really that important anymore. I also doubt people will commute from Macau to Hong Kong as the fare is likely to be expensive due to the bridge toll and Macau real estate is no longer that much cheaper vs. HK these days.z

I actually see the eventual demise of the ferry service once the bridge opens. I expect bus service much like the airport ones to be set up and head to Macau from all parts of the city. Thus, the rail link is not really that important anymore. I also doubt people will commute from Macau to Hong Kong as the fare is likely to be expensive due to the bridge toll and Macau real estate is no longer that much cheaper vs. HK these days.z

IMHO, I still think that the Ferry service will remain or at least find a way to compete.

What I think would suffer a demise IMHO would be those helicopter services. Two services may be a company but three is a crowd.

Hence, the way I see it, it's the helicopter services that would be the hardest hit. They would be really pressured to shape up if they are to be relevant as a mode of transport between HK and Macau.

http://www.nlarchitects.nl/static/media/uploads/slideshow/Dia1____JPG_800x600_q85.jpg
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交叉螺旋港珠澳橋 中港車毋須換車道


【明報專訊】內地多份報章昨日刊登了由荷蘭NL建築設計公司構思的港珠澳大橋主體設計，橋身是交叉螺旋形，以配合內地與香港不同的行車方向，設計公司形容這設計是為接連香港與大陸而度身訂做。


香港車是右用左線行駛，內地汽車則是左用右線行駛。按上述大橋的行車設計，從大陸方向過來的車道，將會在香港方向的車道下完成交叉，駕駛者過境時就毋須變換車道，沿道路行駛即可。但設計公司指出，因這設計較複雜，需要採用輕質材料建設橋樑。


未知港車能否直達珠海


珠海市長鍾世堅前日接受訪問，記者提到港珠澳橋將來能否讓香港汽車來到珠海及流量問題，鍾世堅說︰「香港的汽車到珠海來，應該說是到內地來，是有個管理規定。現在到底能不能隨便到珠海，不是我們這個層可以考慮的問題。」但他強調希望令香港人到珠海有更多方便。


鍾世堅又表示，港珠澳大橋建成後，將令珠海的產業有更大發展，所以目前要做好交通規劃，與大橋連接，「把整個大橋的人跟車留在珠海，來消費、觀光、旅遊」。他又稱，要做好經濟發展的準備，迎接大橋通車後香港高端服務業到珠海的轉變。


香港運輸及房屋局發言人指出，本港早前已完成港珠澳大橋香港口岸國際概念設計比賽，正參考得獎作品作詳細設計基礎，會按原定計劃完成工程。

IMHO, I still think that the Ferry service will remain or at least find a way to compete.

What I think would suffer a demise IMHO would be those helicopter services. Two services may be a company but three is a crowd.

Hence, the way I see it, it's the helicopter services that would be the hardest hit. They would be really pressured to shape up if they are to be relevant as a mode of transport between HK and Macau.

The helicopter is not a main stream service anyways.
People that take the helicopter now is mainly because of its speed.
The bus service is not going to replace the 15 minute journey between Sheung Wan to Macao.
However, the bus service is more competitive than the ferry.

港珠澳橋本地拖延動工

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港珠澳大橋屬國家級重點建設工程，內地及澳門政府均全力推進工程進度，但本港的步伐一直落後，原定今年第三季動工填海興建的大橋香港口岸，又再延遲至最快明年一月才能招標，動工日期至今仍未落實。有立法會議員擔心，大橋香港部分的工程進度一再拖延，港府日後或要耗用大量工程費「趕工」，浪費納稅人的金錢。汽車會則希望大橋盡快落成，方便市民自駕遊及公幹。

港珠澳大橋的香港口岸設於大嶼山機場島東北對開水域，以填海形式興建，面積約一百三十公頃，相等於十分之一個國際機場，初步預算建費約一百億元。該口岸除了是大橋的香港着陸點，港府亦期望它成為本港西面的策略性多式聯運樞紐。

原定今年第三季動工
籌劃中的口岸設有旅檢大樓、私家車及旅遊巴檢查亭，入境處及海關等辦公地方亦集中設在這個人工島上，另外亦有貨物處理設施如X光檢查大樓及驗貨台等。由於口岸鄰近機場，大橋的過境旅客可利用在島上增設的機場捷運系統，直達機場候機處，縮短過關時間。

按港府的原定計劃，香港口岸的填海工程於今年第三季開展，並於二○一五至一六年完工。但路政署高級工程師（港珠澳大橋）林日明表示，由於大橋工程複雜，需要修訂標書的內容，因此最快明年一月才能就填海工程招標，有信心可如期於二○一六年竣工。

不過，澳門及珠海的人工島早於去年底已開始填海，本港的步伐明顯落後，當局卻「死撐」指兩地的人工島面積比香港大，因此才提早施工。而香港及廣東省原本已同意在深圳灣口岸推行「一次性特別配額試驗計劃」，讓香港私家車主可獲一次性的中港車牌過境，作為未來大橋的通關模式示範，但計劃至今只聞樓梯響。

駕駛人士盼早日落成
香港汽車會副會長江日雄表示，駕駛者渴望大橋早日落成，可以及早享受自駕遊的樂趣及方便到內地公幹，而普羅市民亦可經陸路到澳門旅遊，比現時更為方便。他說，由本港乘坐旅遊巴往廣州需時近三小時，大橋日後可成為捷徑。

立法會議員王國興質疑，港府為大橋計劃籌備多時，但動工日期卻一再押後，令人難以理解。他擔心，當局為追趕落後的工程進度，可能要投放額外的「趕工」費用，浪費公帑。

記者劉偉權

China Megaproject Contract Coming Soon
9 August 2010
Engineering News-Record
(c) 2010 McGraw-Hill, Inc.

China plans to award a design-build contract soon for the sunken tube tunnel and artificial islands comprising part of the 30-kilometer-long, $5.5-billion road link between Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau, in the Pearl River Delta. Bids for the bridge section will follow in a few months, says a project source. Officials plan to open the link in 2016.

From Hong Kong, some 5 km of bridges will link to two 700-meter-long islands, which will be linked by the tunnel. The crossing will continue on three cable-stayed bridges with spans from 280 m to 460 m. Viaducts will carry the link to Macau via another island. At 5.6 km, the tunnel will be 2 km longer than the world’s record-holder, the Denmark-Sweden Øresund, say engineers with COWI A/S, Copenhagen. With team leader China Highway Planning and Design Institute Consultants, COWI did preliminary design of the tunnel and islands. Arup Group, London, handled the design of some of the bridges.

Guangzhou-based Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge’s Advance Work Coordination Group Office (AWCGO) has a team of U.S., European and Chinese advisers. In July, says a source, it invited three teams to bid for the tunnel and islands. One of the teams, led by the contractor China Communications Construction Co. Ltd., Beijing, includes COWI and Arup.

To finance construction, the Chinese last year appointed a consortium led by Bank of China to secure $3.2 billion of debt. The governments of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau, which jointly established AWCGO, will pay the balance.

Opinion : New bridge will cut time and cost of cross-border transport
30 October 2010
South China Morning Post

I do not agree with correspondents who have criticised the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge project.

I think it offers a better transport alternative than presently exists.

First of all, once the bridge is built, it will offer drivers the option of another highway going through Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai on the mainland.

At present there are long queues of trucks at the Lok Ma Chau border crossing, as they wait for clearance at immigration control. It is especially bad at the start of the weekend, on a Friday. Many drivers are forced to eat and even sometimes to sleep overnight in the cabins of their vehicles.

This is unhealthy and unsafe. There have been cases of theft and robbery while drivers were asleep. It is generally agreed that congestion is a very serious problem.

This shows that there is clearly a need for another road option.

The new bridge can alleviate these serious congestion problems at Lok Ma Chau.

It has been argued that existing hydrofoil services will be preferred over the bridge as they offer a better option, but I do not agree.

Although you have a faster journey by sea, you are not being offered a point-to-point service.

Piers are situated well away from the city centre and passengers have to get other forms of public transport once they alight from the boat. This is time-consuming.

When they get to the ferry terminal before their trip, customers have to buy their hydrofoil tickets.

There are often long queues. If the sailing of their choice is full they may have to wait for an hour or two to make their trip, and this wastes time.

The other option is to book days in advance, but this is inconvenient.

The whole process of travelling by hydrofoil will be more time-consuming than using the bridge once it is open for business.

Drivers and coaches will have direct routes and will reach their destinations with ease.

This will be good for the economies of Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau as it will be easier for businessmen to meet up with each other and transport their goods.

There will be vigorous competition, so transport costs will go down.

I see the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge as an efficient transport alternative.

Also, the construction project will provide thousands of jobs.

Wong Yiu-ka, North Point

HK-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Authority Awards Tender To China Communications Construction JV
18 November 2010

HONG KONG (Dow Jones)--A China Communications Construction Co. Ltd. (1800.HK) joint venture received a contract to design and build two artificial islands and a 6.7-kilometer tunnel for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Hong Kong Transport Department said Wednesday.

The contract, awarded by the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Authority, will tentatively commence this year, the statement said, without specifying the value of the contract. Upon completion, which is scheduled for 2016, the tunnel will be the world's longest immersed tube tunnel.

The tendering process was undertaken and supervised by authorities in mainland China, the statement added.

Other members of the joint venture include AECOM Asia Co., Shanghai Urban Construction (Group) Co., China Highway Planning and Design Institute Inc., COWI A/S, Shanghai Tunnel Engineering & Rail Transit Design and Research Institute, and CCCC Fourth Harbor Engineering Investigation and Design Institute, the statement said.

Pearl river delta builds up a future for growth
16 November 2010
Financial Times

Hong Kong's economic future is tied to the Pearl river delta in neighbouring Guangdong province.

The delta was an early beneficiary of China's reform programme. In 1979, two special economic zones were established there, in Shenzhen and Zhuhai, and Guangdong was given permission to open up to business before other parts of China. Its gross domestic product (GDP) grew from $8bn in 1980 to $89bn in 2000 - and to more than $450bn in 2009. The region's real GDP growth in the period exceeded 16 per cent per year, well above China's 10 per cent.

The delta has become a manufacturing platform of global importance, and a world leader in electronic goods, electrical products, electrical and electronic components, watches and clocks, toys, garments, plastic products, and numerous other goods. It accounts for only 0.6 per cent of China's land area and 3.5 per cent of its population, but one-tenth of GDP, a quarter of trade and a fifth of inward foreign direct investment.

It was affected by the global downturn in 2009, but growth was still impressive and the subsequent rebound even more so. Guangdong's GDP - 80 per cent of which is generated on the delta - grew 11.6 per cent year-on-year to Rmb3,150bn ($473bn) in the first three-quarters of 2010 after growing 8.6 per cent last year. Guangdong's exports, 95 per cent of which are made in the delta, were up 27.8 per cent to $321bn in the first three-quarters of 2010. Exports of mechanical and electronics products, accounting for almost three-quarters of provincial exports, were up 28.9 per cent. Exports of clothes, footwear, furniture, and toys were up 21.6 per cent, 22.8 per cent, 39.3 per cent, and 29.8 per cent respectively.

The area has had to contend with rising wages, land costs, and utility rates; an appreciating renminbi; a new employment law; instances of labour unrest; and more restrictive export processing regulations. But, while many individual firms have fallen on hard times, the loss of competitiveness that some predicted has failed to materialise.

The renminbi is still undervalued, utility rates are well below world averages, and real manufacturing wages have not caught up to productivity gains over the past two decades. While reported manufacturing margins in the delta are low, cost increases have not resulted in a loss of competitive position because low margins stem more from competition among factories than from competition between the delta and other locations.

Most exports are made by foreign-invested companies, many of which book their profits outside China. Re-export margins for goods shipped through Hong Kong, a low-tax centre, have averaged around 25 per cent.

However, the delta's economy is changing. It has moved beyond simple assembly to include production of components, inputs, and capital goods; beyond light industry into heavier industries such as the auto, chemical, and machinery industries; and beyond low-tech products and simple services into higher-tech products and more advanced services.

Much of the pressure on low value-added industries has come from higher value-added industries competing for land, labour, and resources. The Guangdong government has also embarked on a big programme to upgrade the province's economy, pushing some industries out of the region to make way for others. Wang Yang, provincial party secretary, says it is time to "empty the cage so new birds can come in". This approach is reflected in the National Development and Reform Commission's "Outline of the Plan for the Reform and Development of the Pearl River Delta (2008-2020)". The commission intends the delta to continue to lead China's development by moving up the value-added ladder, fostering advanced manufacturing and technology industries, developing globally advanced innovation capabilities and building strong modern service sectors. Specific targets include a per capita GDP up from Rmb62,644 ($9,400) in 2008 to Rmb80,000 ($12,000) in 2012 and Rmb135,000 ($20,260) by 2020. These are ambitious targets, but the delta has consistently exceeded its targets over the past 30 years.

What does this mean for Hong Kong? Many of the companies coming under cost pressure in the delta are from Hong Kong and also face increased competition from Chinese competitors. Industries and activities continue to shift from Hong Kong into the delta. However, Hong Kong remains the nexus between the most dynamic economic region in China and the rest of the world. The territory also remains a high-end service provider, management centre and financier for much of the economic activity in the PRD. Activities displaced from Hong Kong are replaced by higher value managerial, marketing, and financial activities.

China's leadership recognises the critical role Hong Kong plays in the delta's development. The NDRC's plan calls for greater economic integration with Hong Kong through improved infrastructure (the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the Guan-gzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link and others); streamlined cross-boundary travel and trade; and co-operation in science, technology, education, training, logistics, finance, and the environment.These intentions have been enshrined in the Hong Kong-Guangdong Co-operation Framework Agreement signed in April.

Hong Kong and the delta are likely to benefit from being parts of the one of the world's most exciting regional economies.

Michael Enright is Sun Hung Kai Professor at the University of Hong Kong. He is co-author of The Greater Pearl River Delta (Invest Hong Kong, 2010).

Leading the world

Hong Kong continues to be an extremely important management centre for foreign multinational companies that are operating in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to a survey of 1,000 western and Japanese multinationals in 1998 and repeated 10 years later, Hong Kong substantially extended its lead over Singapore as a regional (Asia or Asia-Pacific) or sub-regional (North Asia-Pacific or South Asia-Pacific) headquarters location.

And, while Shanghai is increasing in importance as a regional centre, it remains way behind Hong Kong.

The results from managers in Hong Kong also demonstrated that the territory's importance to multinationals increased in all but one activity (import/export) - and in that area it remained the same.

In part this was because of the increased importance of the Asia-Pacific region as a whole to the companies - particularly the western companies in the sample - and in part to the expansion of Hong Kong's roles.

This project is so awesome! :)

This project is so awesome! :)

It looks more and more like a reclamation project. Will Disney allow a container terminal facility near the entrance to their park?

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AECOM awarded US$150-million consultancy contract for the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge

Release date - 05012011

LOS ANGELES - AECOM Technology Corporation, a leading provider of professional technical and management support services for government and commercial clients around the world, announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, AECOM Asia Company Limited, has been awarded a US$150-million consultancy contract - which includes detailed design and provision of supervision-in-charge and resident site staff costs - for the superstructures and infrastructure of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge’s (HZMB) Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities (HKBCF).

Under the consultancy contract from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s Highways Department, AECOM will provide detailed design and contract administration during the construction of the facilities and associated connecting road system. The 18-mile HZMB’s main section - which is a series of bridges and a sub-sea tunnel - and the 7-mile Hong Kong Link Road - which is a series of bridges, a land tunnel and at-grade roads - will connect the HKBCF on the east side of the Pearl River Estuary to the Zhuhai-Macao boundary crossing facilities on the estuary’s west side.

‘AECOM is excited to work on this important roadway project,’ said AECOM President and Chief Executive Officer John M. Dionisio. ‘This is a major engineering-consultancy contract from Hong Kong’s Highways Department, and we are honored to play a key role in supporting the transportation-infrastructure needs of the growing demand for boundary-crossing communications in the region.’

The AECOM-designed facilities are targeted for completion in concert with the bridge link’s opening during 2016.

About AECOM

AECOM (NYSE: ACM) is a global provider of professional technical and management support services to a broad range of markets, including transportation, facilities, environmental, energy, water and government. With approximately 52,000 employees around the world, AECOM is a leader in all of the key markets that it serves. AECOM provides a blend of global reach, local knowledge, innovation, and technical excellence in delivering solutions that create, enhance and sustain the world’s built, natural, and social environments. A Fortune 500 company, AECOM serves clients in more than 100 countries and had revenue of $6.5 billion during its fiscal year 2010. More information on AECOM and its services can be found at www.aecom.com.

Forward-Looking Statements: All statements in this press release other than statements of historical fact are ‘forward-looking statements’ for purposes of federal and state securities laws, including any statements of plans for future operations or expected revenue.Actual results could differ materially from those projected or assumed in any of our forward-looking statements.Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our forward-looking statements are set forth in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2010, and our other reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. AECOM does not intend, and undertakes no obligation, to update any forward-looking statement.

港珠澳橋港接線「橋隧路」三合一

耗資約一百億元建造的港珠澳大橋香港段迄今仍未能動工，不過，當局估計大橋的香港口岸填海工程將於今年上半年招標，而連接口岸與大橋主體的香港接線亦可望於今年內動工，並於二○一六年通車，屆時將為本港提供一條貫穿珠江三角洲西岸地區的全新通道。市民日後經大橋由本港往澳門及珠海，行車時間分別只需二十及三十分鐘。路政署昨率先將香港接線的高架橋設計及走線模擬圖上載官方網頁，讓市民先睹為快。


全長十二公里的港珠澳大橋香港接線，是一條「橋、隧、路」三合一的公路，由香港特區邊界，連接起大橋主體與位於赤鱲角機場東北部海域的香港口岸。工程包括由特區區界伸延至機場島觀景山的一段九點四公里長高架橋、一公里長的機場島觀景山隧道及一段機場東面填海區的一點六公里長地面道路。

高架橋減對環境破壞
接線的西部跨海高架橋是由大跨度橋樑所組成，主跨度為七十五至一百八十米，鑑於走線位置正處機場西面的船隻航道之上，故橋身的位置需相應提升，以提供四十一米的淨空高度供船隻通過。

至於接線東面的一段高架橋，則處於機場及北大嶼山之間的水道，為了減少對現有自然環境的干擾，亦採用了跨度較大的橋樑跨越現有陸地如沙螺灣陸岬考古遺址，避免觸及大嶼山海岸線，同時減少在沙螺灣一帶橋墩的數目，由十四個減至七個，以減輕對景觀的影響。同時，施工時會將地基的樁蓋置於海床之下，減少對海峽水流的障礙。

據悉，這條雙程三線分隔公路的設計速度為每小時一百公里，屆時由本港往珠海，車程可由現時近四小時縮短至半小時；而經陸路往澳門更只需二十分鐘。

按港府原定計劃，大橋香港口岸填海工程應於去年第三季開展，但招標工作一拖再拖，路政署最新估計會在今年上半年內完成招標，並可於二○一六年竣工。

不過，去年一名居於東涌的年長居民，申請司法覆核要求推翻香港口岸及接線的環評報告，案件將於今年三月開審，判決結果有可能影響工程的進度。


港珠澳大橋香港接線小資料
全長：12公里

組成部分：9.4公里長高架橋、1公里長隧道及1.6公里長地面道路

橋樑主跨度：75至180米

動工及完工日期：今年動工，2016年完工

造價：09年初步預算100億元

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郭炳湘倡港珠澳橋增鐵路

郭 炳 湘 倡 建 港 珠 澳 鐵 路

港 珠 澳 大 橋 在 規 劃 初 期 曾 研 究 加 入 鐵 路 ， 但 因 技 術 及 財 務 效 益 問 題 遭 到 否 決 。

　　(星島日報報道)全國政協常委郭炳湘日前去信政務司司長唐英年，詳述他對國家《十二‧五規劃》藍圖、港珠澳鐵路運輸系統和珠三角發展的看法和建議。他認為香港要提升並鞏固在國際貿易和航運中心地位及定位，值得研究在香港、珠海和澳門之間，興建直接鐵路，並盡早落實推行，有利香港及珠三角的未來經濟發展，推動人流物流快速流轉。

　　郭炳湘於本月十九日撰寫了一封信予唐英年，內容是關於他建議將港珠澳鐵路的可行性研究加進國家《十二‧五規劃》內。

　　他提到，根據國務院於○八年城際軌道交通網絡的概念，中國未來交通發展可以概括為「城內是地鐵，城際是城鐵，城市群之間是高鐵」的模式，即城市圈內的城市應由城際軌道連

通，可是香港、珠海和澳門雖同位於珠三角城市圈內，但三地並未有直接的城際軌道連繫，跟國家軌道政策概念似不相符，故建議加進港珠澳鐵路路，以配合國家整體軌道規劃政策。

　　他指現時港珠澳之間的鐵路交通依靠石壁（廣州南）站才可連通，並非一個三角形，「若可在港珠澳之間興建直接的城際、貨運軌道連繫，可促使區內人流和物流運轉更暢通，提升區內經濟的效益。」在運貨方面，現時西部地區如成都、重慶等大多倚靠長三角作為外輸港口。

　　在水路方面，珠三角跟東南亞和歐洲地區較近，加強西部地區跟珠三角的貨運鐵路網絡，將可帶動珠三角地區的港口發展，使長三角和珠三角的港口外輸貨運量更加平衡。

　　 郭炳湘認為，與建港珠澳的客貨運鐵路，均有助提升和鞏固本港的國際貿易及航運中心地位，並可推動珠三角地區的經濟社會協調發展，與其他國內的經濟區如長江三角洲、渤海經濟區的競爭性及加快推動珠三角區的一體化，以至整個南中國的長遠經濟都有莫大裨益；而鐵路的建設有助香港實現在《十二‧五規劃》的功能定位之餘，更能推動《十二‧五規劃建議》戰略目標之一的「區域協調發展及城鎮化」。

　　事實上，港珠澳大橋在規劃初期曾研究加入鐵路，但港府和澳門均反對，主要是工程技術方面，由於大橋同時有橋及隧道部分，故難以加入鐵路；另由於要為兩地提供直通車，牽涉額外費用，故對財務效益會帶來不利的影響，以致有關建議遭到否決
2011-01-24

Safety precautions, contingency measures vital to every voyage
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Government Press Release

Vessel owners and personnel on board must take adequate safety precautions and have in place contingency measures for every intended voyage, the Director of Marine, Mr Roger Tupper, said this afternoon (January 20).

Addressing the opening of the Navigational Safety Seminar organised by the Marine Department at the Hong Kong Space Museum, Mr Tupper said that personnel on board should keep a good lookout, maintain a safe speed and fully comply with the Collision Regulations once at sea.

He said, "Prior to and during the voyage, it is also very important to be fully aware of the latest weather reports, especially fog and strong wind warnings."

As it will be the foggy season shortly, Mr Tupper emphasised the need to proceed at an appropriate and safe speed, especially in these days of climate change when mist and fog could appear outside of the normal season.

Of special note in the upcoming years, vessel owners and personnel on board should exercise particular caution in the vicinity of all the existing and future marine works in the waters of Hong Kong and the Pearl River estuary. For instance, reclamation work in the Ex-Wan Chai Public Cargo Working Area and Causeway Bay Typhoon Shelter will commence early this year and last for some six years. The construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, including reclamation to the east of the airport for the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities, will also commence and last for some five years.

The Marine Department will publish Marine Department Notices to promulgate the various stages of these works with navigational safety advice.

Today's annual Navigational Safety Seminar attracted about 160 representatives from the shipping and fishing industries, as well as masters and operators of local vessels and river-trade vessels. They exchanged views on points for vessels to note when navigating in restricted visibility, safety for local vessels at sea, an analysis of marine accidents and their implications, and weather information and navigational safety.

Representatives from the Marine Police, Fire Services Department, Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department also joined the discussions.

To further promote awareness and co-operation among marine users and associations, a series of education seminars and publicity campaigns will be launched to highlight proper safety precautions so that marine accidents can be kept to the minimum.

HK community must get more involved in plans for the delta
22 February 2011
SCMP

The discussion over the "Action Plan for the Bay Area of the Pearl River Estuary" is wrongly cast as a battle between integration and autonomy. The real issue is good versus bad planning.

"One country, two systems" responded to the fears of many in China and Hong Kong, before the handover. But by now the focus should be on building one country out of two systems through dynamic integration. For matters such as law, autonomy of the two systems benefits Hong Kong and the mainland. However, as we breathe the same air, drink the same water, and as our economies are tied together, we need to integrate our transport and urban plans, and our environmental controls, for the Pearl River Delta.

The Bay Area action plan shows that planning progress is deplorable. It took 14 years to achieve plans for the delta. And when they came out, only a mini digest was available for the public to comment on within 10 days. The Planning Department said the study is just a collection of old plans rather than a mature strategic plan for the delta. This may be the painful truth reflecting the lack of inter-departmental co-operation in Hong Kong and across the border. Fortunately, people spoke up and the consultation has been extended, and more complete reports will hopefully be released soon.

So far, we have seen some good ideas, including emission control areas to limit air pollution by the shipping industry and green ways to be kept free from development. But the action plan's focus is more on promoting what will be saved rather than explaining how much more will be lost. Little detail is provided of the new developments and massive reclamations that will reshape the entire delta.

The action plan has many new road and rail links, including cross-delta links the administration did not show when it consulted the community on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge. Now we see that while we are building a road-only bridge between two cities which can't handle more vehicles, Shenzhen and Zhuhai are building a rail bridge we can use just north of Hong Kong.

When officials went to the Legislative Council for the express rail funding, they refused to include a station in the New Territories where half of our population live, because it would slow down the service. The mainland has included small stations and runs both local and express services along the new rail lines to Guangzhou. The action plan also confirms the Hong Kong-Shenzhen airport link with high-speed trains transferring passengers between airports. This link will again include a minor station, this time to stimulate the development of Qianhai - in Shenzhen of course. The Hong Kong community has yet to comment on the project.

Clearly, the mainland teams sweep the floor with our bureaucrats . The Hong Kong community should get involved early in the planning of the Pearl River Delta as it directly impacts the future living environment, infrastructure and economic opportunities. It is not a matter of autonomy over integration, but a matter of improving plans and projects before it is too late to make changes.

Paul Zimmerman, CEO, Designing Hong Kong

Tycoon repeats demand for rail link on bridge
6 March 2011
SCMP

Former Sun Hung Kai Properties chairman Walter Kwok Ping-sheung is not one to admit defeat and yesterday repeated his demand that a railway to be added to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge that is already under construction.

He proposed the idea in July 2010 and in January sent a letter to officials involved, demanding a railway be added to the bridge.

Speaking at the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing, Hong Kong delegate Kwok proposed that the railway be written into the national five-year plan.

The railway might drive up the costs of building the bridge by 30 per cent, but the benefits of linking Hong Kong to the rail networks of the other two cities would override the expense, he said.

Building a bridge across the Pearl River delta between Shenzhen and Zhongshan - back on the drawing board five years after being shelved - would marginalise Hong Kong and Macau and weaken Hong Kong airport's dominance, he said.

Chinese mainland to deepen economic cooperation with HK, Macau over next 5 years
5 March 2011

BEIJING, Mar. 5 (Xinhua) – China's central government will strengthen exchange and economic cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong and Macau SAR and further support the deepening of intra-regional cooperation between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macao for mutual benefit in the five years to come, according to the country's draft 12th Five-year Plan for National Economic and Social Development submitted Saturday to national lawmakers for reviewing.

The draft plan also gives a list of the key cooperation projects between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macau SAR as follows:

--Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge

The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, which links China's southern economic hub of Guangdong Province to Hong Kong and Macau regions, will be the world's longest cross-sea bridge upon completion.

Construction of the bridge was kicked off in December 2009 and is expected to be completed by 2016.

--Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link

The Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, also known as Guangshengang XRL, is an express railway to be open in phases in the period of 2011 to 2016.

It will be also connected with the Wuguang High-speed Railway and the Hangzhou-Fuzhou-Shenzhen Express Rail Link.

-- Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Express Line

As a link between Hong Kong International Airport and Shenzhen Baoan International Airport, the Hong Kong-Shenzhen Western Express Line will become Hong Kong SAR's third direct cross-boundary railway.

-- Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Checkpoint

Liantang/Heung Yuen Wai boundary checkpoint will serve as a quick link between Hong Kong and South China's Guangdong province.

Planned to connect the Eastern Corridor in neighboring Shenzhen, the checkpoint will offer an efficient access to the eastern part of Guangdong Province and adjacent provinces via the Shenzhen-Huizhou and Shenzhen-Shantou expressways, cutting the journey time between Hong Kong and Shenzhen city, the eastern part of Guangdong, Fujian and Jiangxi provinces.

-- Shenzhen Qianhai Producer Service Zone

As a key cooperation project in service sector between Shenzhen city of Guangdong and Hong Kong SAR, the zone is expected to become a bridgehead in the producer service industry in the Asia-Pacific region by 2020.

-- Guangzhou Nansha New Area Development Zone

The Guangzhou Nansha New Area Development Zone is anticipated to blossom into a business, technology innovation and education center for Chinese mainland and Hong Kong and Macau SAR.

-- Zhuhai Hengqin New Area Development Zone

With a planned area of 106.46 square kilometers, the Zhuhai Hengqin New Area Development Zone is expected to offer a new platform for industrial upgradation in Zhujiang city, and help to explore new cooperation model between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macau SAR.

Environmental impact study of delta bridge challenged in court
23 March 2011
South China Morning Post

A public consultation carried out by the government on construction of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge was unable to serve its purpose because the project's environmental impact study did not meet assessment standards, a court heard yesterday.

Chu Yee-wah, a Tung Chung resident, is challenging the impact study as well as the granting of permits for certain parts of the huge infrastructure project.

Chu earlier filed an application for a judicial review of Environmental Protection Department director Anissa Wong Sean-yee's decision in 2009 to approve impact reports and grant environmental permits to construct certain sections of the massive project.

"Members of the public can comment on a compliant report," Chu's barrister, Philip Dykes SC, said yesterday. "But if a report is non-compliant, the process is defeated."

Dykes said the process of consultation was important as it allowed the public to comment, and the director of environmental protection to take into consideration things that might have been overlooked.

Yesterday saw the first day of a four-day hearing on the review application at the High Court before Mr Justice Joseph Fok.

The impact study and granting of permits under challenge concern border-crossing facilities and a section of the bridge in Hong Kong known as the Hong Kong Link Road. Chu criticised the reports drafted by consultants, saying they do not comply with requirements imposed on them.

Chu's application argued that an important aspect of the impact study was the public's evaluation of how acceptable a project's environmental cost would be.

Chu, 65, who is retired, has diabetes and a heart condition. She is contending that the construction and operation of the projects in question would affect her health. She is receiving legal aid for the application, and was not present at the hearing yesterday.

Chu's legal team argued the reports failed to consider the bridge's impact on public health. Experts cited in her application said the impact reports ignored pollution such as fine suspended particles and sulphur dioxide, and that an assumption in one report that the project would not generate ozone was invalid and unscientific.

Speaking in court yesterday, Dykes said the impact reports had not mentioned the limitations of a model used to predict regional air quality.

The model, called "Pollutants in the Atmosphere and the Transport over Hong Kong", was developed by the Environmental Protection Department.

Construction of the bridge is scheduled to begin this year and to be completed by 2016. The estimated cost of the entire project, including the bridge and connecting facilities, is 72.9 billion yuan (HK$83 billion).

Edwin Town, deputy chairman of the executive committee at Clear The Air, an organisation supporting air-pollution reduction measures, said environmental impact assessment reports frequently left out important information.

Clear The Air was supporting Chu's application, said Town outside the court yesterday.

^^ I wonder who sponsored or told her to fail the lawsuit against the EIA and the project.

Maersk to cut stops in HK by one-third
Shipping line to shift business to Nansha
Keith Wallis
Mar 25, 2011


Maersk Line, the world's biggest container-shipping company, will slash the number of ship calls in Hong Kong by about a third starting from next month when it transfers the business to an affiliated container terminal at Nansha.
The Nansha facility, Guangzhou South China Oceangate Container Terminal, is partly owned by APM Terminals, which, like the container line, is controlled by Danish shipping giant AP Moeller-Maersk.

Did the traffic projections take into account the transfer of freight services from HK to the mainland?

Maersk to cut stops in HK by one-third
Shipping line to shift business to Nansha
Keith Wallis
Mar 25, 2011


Maersk Line, the world's biggest container-shipping company, will slash the number of ship calls in Hong Kong by about a third starting from next month when it transfers the business to an affiliated container terminal at Nansha.
The Nansha facility, Guangzhou South China Oceangate Container Terminal, is partly owned by APM Terminals, which, like the container line, is controlled by Danish shipping giant AP Moeller-Maersk.

Did the traffic projections take into account the transfer of freight services from HK to the mainland?

Bus fetishist, building the bridge also aims to make sure that the same thing will not happen to HKIA.

New doubt over Shenzhen-Zhongshan link
8 April 2011
SCMP

A project to give Shenzhen much-wanted direct acess to the western Pearl River Delta is in danger of being shelved again.

Shenzhen first came up with the plan to build an underwater tunnel or a bridge to connect it with Zhongshan about five years ago - shortly after its request to be included in the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge scheme was rejected by Beijing due to Hong Kong's strong reaction.

Shenzhen responded by proposing to build the tunnel or bridge, which also raised concerns in Hong Kong as the project was to run parallel to the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge. Some mainland experts estimated that the Shenzhen-Zhongshan corridor could lure 40 per cent of the bridge's likely traffic away.

However, Shenzhen could not get political backing from either the provincial or the central government - both wanted the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge to have priority - and the plan was set aside.

Shenzhen revived the idea last year - this time apparently with the Guangdong government's blessing. Guangdong Governor Huang Huahua said in January that the project would be included in its 12th five-year plan. It was estimated to cost around 30 billion yuan (HK$35.6 billion).

But just as Shenzhen thought it had finally got what it wanted, it was told that the National Development and Reform Commission - the mainland's top economic planner - had decided to build a bridge between Humen in Dongguan and Nansha in Guangzhou as part of its regional railway project.

It was a serious blow for Shenzhen as a Humen-Nansha bridge would run parallel to the Shenzhen-Zhongshan corridor, leaving the latter with little chance of being given approval.

Some politicians in Shenzhen were disappointed that the city had once again been left out.

"In the past, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan bridge was put on hold because the central government wanted to support Hong Kong," said Jin Xinyi , a member of the Shenzhen committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

"Shenzhen has already been marginalised last time because we had to care for people in Hong Kong and Macau," Jin said. "Now Guangzhou also wants to take away our bread."

Some Shenzhen political delegates to the national and provincial assemblies complained in private that delegates from Hong Kong had for years tried to shoot down the Shenzhen-Zhongshan link project in order to protect Hong Kong's position.

The latest twist again exposed the behind-the-scene rivalries among Pearl River Delta cities.

Many in Shenzhen felt the city was not competing on a level playing field with Hong Kong, which they said had the ear of Beijing, and Guangzhou, the provincial capital.

Jin admitted the future of the Shenzhen-Zhongshan corridor was now far from certain.

"It may have been included in Guangdong's 12th five-year plan. But there is no timetable and they haven't even decided the landing point locations. Now we suddenly have this new bridge [between Humen and Dongguan]. This is not what Shenzhen had anticipated."

Jin said the rivalries would leave the region divided and the ultimate winner would be Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta. "Who is happy to see Hong Kong fail? Who wants to replace its position? It's not Shenzhen. It's Shanghai."

Ding Li , an expert on regional economics at the Guangdong Academy of Social Sciences, said the Guangzhou to Dongguan link made more economic sense.

"First Guangzhou is an more important engine in driving [the economy of] whole Guangdong. It's natural the provincial and central government will consider it ahead of Shenzhen. Second, we have already invested a lot on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge. Do we need another one so close to it?

"In the end this is all about rivalries among Pearl River Delta cities. Beijing will be the arbitrator."

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I don't know how much extra to implement these traffic flipper, but if it need to be implement, I really think it should be done on land.

If there is concern the traffic intersect, what does the design of the Macau/ZhuHai split looks like?

Tycoon repeats demand for rail link on bridge
6 March 2011
SCMP

Former Sun Hung Kai Properties chairman Walter Kwok Ping-sheung is not one to admit defeat and yesterday repeated his demand that a railway to be added to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge that is already under construction.

He proposed the idea in July 2010 and in January sent a letter to officials involved, demanding a railway be added to the bridge.

Speaking at the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in Beijing, Hong Kong delegate Kwok proposed that the railway be written into the national five-year plan.

The railway might drive up the costs of building the bridge by 30 per cent, but the benefits of linking Hong Kong to the rail networks of the other two cities would override the expense, he said.

Building a bridge across the Pearl River delta between Shenzhen and Zhongshan - back on the drawing board five years after being shelved - would marginalise Hong Kong and Macau and weaken Hong Kong airport's dominance, he said.

I also believe the bridge network should include rail, or least make provision for construction of rail.

A railway would be okay BUT it is not an absolute requirement.

Remember, this road-based mega bridge was designed to act as an alternative transport medium as well as to decongest (?) and provide competition in comparison to existing modes of transport which are water-transport (i.e. Turbojet Ferries) and air transport (i.e. helicopter, plane, etc.)

I think this existing road-based transport courtesy of this bridge will suffice. :)

A railway would be okay BUT it is not an absolute requirement.

so is the bridge, not an absolute requirement.

Remember, this road-based mega bridge was designed to act as an alternative transport medium as well as to decongest (?) and provide competition in comparison to existing modes of transport which are water-transport (i.e. Turbojet Ferries) and air transport (i.e. helicopter, plane, etc.)

Not everyone wants to drive, not everyone has a car, mainly parking issues.

I think with a project this size, we need to look at possibility of future need. ferry will not be able compete with rail, the advantage of rail is you should be able to travel from HK trains network into Macau's, without changing your mode of transport.


I think this existing road-based transport courtesy of this bridge will suffice. :) For the time being...

so is the bridge, not an absolute requirement.

Some data (that also included the ongoing decline of HK's ports) would be nice, but...

Some data (that also included the ongoing decline of HK's ports) would be nice, but...

but...

are you so high on your bus fetish so you fail to realize that the bridge is also going to feed HKIA too?

Not everyone wants to drive, not everyone has a car, mainly parking issues.

I think with a project this size, we need to look at possibility of future need. ferry will not be able compete with rail, the advantage of rail is you should be able to travel from HK trains network into Macau's, without changing your mode of transport.



In this part of the world in PRD, public transport is actually the norm for travelling even inter-city traffic. There are a lot of cross-boundary inter-city bus services within the region, and private driving is still very small percentage of the pie. So even without rail and driving, people are still going to travel by bus which provides greater flexibility in terms of possible destinations unlike rail is really fixed to the track.

The bridge also focused in the freight logistic sector, which is expected to be a big trunk of the bridge traffic in the future. Traditionally, the west side of the PRD has been left behind in development due to the lack of connection with the east where HK, SZ, Dungguang and part of GZ metro are. The bridge is planned to open up opportunity on the west side of the PRD with better connection with the east.

In this part of the world in PRD, public transport is actually the norm for travelling even inter-city traffic. There are a lot of cross-boundary inter-city bus services within the region, and private driving is still very small percentage of the pie. So even without rail and driving, people are still going to travel by bus which provides greater flexibility in terms of possible destinations unlike rail is really fixed to the track.

I agree bus will be important to connect people from HK to China, but that is because rail is not readily avaliable to those destinations. And rail can move a lot more people then buses, without traffic jam.


The bridge also focused in the freight logistic sector, which is expected to be a big trunk of the bridge traffic in the future. Traditionally, the west side of the PRD has been left behind in development due to the lack of connection with the east where HK, SZ, Dungguang and part of GZ metro are. The bridge is planned to open up opportunity on the west side of the PRD with better connection with the east.

Indeed, I think the primary focus is indeed freight.

I agree bus will be important to connect people from HK to China, but that is because rail is not readily avaliable to those destinations. And rail can move a lot more people then buses, without traffic jam.


Buses can also have their own dedicated lane or even structures to run in congestion-free environment like the rail does.

Buses can also have their own dedicated lane or even structures to run in congestion-free environment like the rail does.

Yes, it does help, but you can never achieve that in the city centre. Cars and others need to turn, so they will be allowed to be on bus lane, ending up blocking it.

One issue with train, is if one break down, every train after it is affected, with other mode of transport, it can usually easily overtake the problem one.

Why do HK keep on expanding its rail network?
Why do Macau wants to build one?
Why is every developing regions in China need to build one?

Mainly because they know, the solution to traffic gridlock can not be solve on the surface.

Yes, it does help, but you can never achieve that in the city centre. Cars and others need to turn, so they will be allowed to be on bus lane, ending up blocking it.


Rail can't achieve the same thing as well.
The common solution is to put the rail underground or overhead, which a lot of cities provide similar facilities for buses. The bottom line is how many people are going to benefit from the infrastructure, and what is the price tag that come with it.

Yes, it does help, but you can never achieve that in the city centre. Cars and others need to turn, so they will be allowed to be on bus lane, ending up blocking it.


That is not true. Instead for bus lanes, one can build an individual busway only for buses. One example would be the El Monte Busway (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Monte_Busway) in Los Angeles. It is basically a isolated lane initially intended for buses, but later used as a carpool lane. It allows traffic to go from downtown into the suburbs, built right beside a rail system. It has stops in between large streets for people to get into the metro rails, or simply get onto the street.

But the downside is, Hong Kong simply has way too much buses for these kind of things to be implemented. It would be way too expensive.

Might be possible in roads like Island Eastern Corridor, though.

Rail can't achieve the same thing as well.
The common solution is to put the rail underground or overhead, which a lot of cities provide similar facilities for buses.

We are talking about HK/Macau/Zhuhai etc, not other city.

The bottom line is how many people are going to benefit from the infrastructure, and what is the price tag that come with it.

Hardly significant if you implement now, then when the bridge is completed.

The bottom line is, how many can potentially be benefit? in 5y time, or 20y time, we may not need it now, but the engineering must provision for a rail expansion.

We are talking about HK/Macau/Zhuhai etc, not other city.

Hardly significant if you implement now, then when the bridge is completed.

The bottom line is, how many can potentially be benefit? in 5y time, or 20y time, we may not need it now, but the engineering must provision for a rail expansion.


Agree engineering must have provision, but not necessary for "rail expansion" only. I am sure the bridge is designed with traffic and economic projection 20-30 years out, not today nor even the next 10 years. The projection may not even come in 40 years, or it will be situated in 15, who knows.

It is about at what "cost" again. The roadway infrastructures are already there in all three cities, but not the rail system. Having a rail across the delta is not exactly just crossing the delta, it also requires extensive connection and construction at all three ends.

a isolated lane initially intended for buses...

Hong Kong simply has way too much buses for these kind of things to be implemented.

Wouldn't a very higher number of bus passengers suggest that it would work better in a city with limited urban road space (if you measure success by average journey time per PERSON). If the measure was average vehicle (or rich person) journey time then the system would be a catastrophic failure.

It is about at what "cost" again. The roadway infrastructures are already there in all three cities, but not the rail system. Having a rail across the delta is not exactly just crossing the delta, it also requires extensive connection and construction at all three ends.

HK and Zhuhai has a rail network that should easily connect.

Macau's is about to implememt its rail system, and I think Zhuhai's network has already provisioned to connected to Macau's.

Saving a few billions now can means tens of billions in 15 years time.

HK and Zhuhai has a rail network that should easily connect.

Macau's is about to implememt its rail system, and I think Zhuhai's network has already provisioned to connected to Macau's.

Saving a few billions now can means tens of billions in 15 years time.

It isn't as you think actually.

The dual track carriage under Tsing Ma Bridge and on Tsing Yi are actually designed to only handle the full capacity of Airport Express and Tung Chung Lines, which is like 21 or somthing trains per hour. This number came out from the study done during that HSR controversy.
Both lines are operating at reserved capacity now, and it is expected to grow in the future.
So injecting more rail traffic on the existing rail system in HK is either going to deteroriate the AR and TCL services in long run, or it requires spending a few more hundred or thousand billions of dollars to build a brand new separate system.
At the same time, MTR (not the formely KCR system) uses a narrower guage standard than the mainland, this may also be questionable to operate trains on different track system as well.

On the other hand, the planned system in Macau is a light rail system, a different system and design standard than what a inter-city heavy rail would be. The two hardly fuse in together, so at the end the rail in Macau may as well just stop at the edge of the city.

I ain't familiar with the situation in ZH, so I am not going to comment on that part.

Here's my opinion on this:

The ferry companies (like Turbojet) already hold a strong position in terms of Hong Kong<->Macau travel. In fact, they operate 24/7 and if ever demand increases, they can easily purchase or get more boats.

Atm, the ferry system is already sufficient.

This bridge is an added bonus in the sense that current options for HK<->MO travel are available and are more than enough.........BUT the bridge gives you another mode of travel (and a much cheaper price at that).

This works for travelers who are not in a hurry but want the cheapest possible form of travel between Hong Kong and Macau. So much so that by year 2020 (est. full 100% completion of this bridge), the ferry companies like Turbojet expect that the bridge WILL steal a portion of its client base and revenue stream.

Hence, this will create price competition for better services and/or possible cheaper travel rates.

It's a win-win.

Hence why I said that the rail transport mode for Hong Kong and Macau, while a nice proposition, is imho NOT a dire or absolute requirement.

Human beings cannot live without food or water or oxygen.......but people will still be alive even without the existence of the said rail link.

Well, okay, if there are those who want to build a rail link, that is fine. However, who will foot the bill and pay for everything? Government(s)? Taxpayers? A mix of both?

Or everything from the private sector? Yet, it begs a question: are there any private companies brave enough that would want to shoulder billions for such an endeavor? Yes? No?

Human beings cannot live without food or water or oxygen.......but people will still be alive even without the existence of the said rail link.

Well, okay, if there are those who want to build a rail link, that is fine. However, who will foot the bill and pay for everything? Government(s)? Taxpayers? A mix of both?

Or everything from the private sector? Yet, it begs a question: are there any private companies brave enough that would want to shoulder billions for such an endeavor? Yes? No?

They couldn't find any private partners to come-in and help finance the road let alone rail aspect of this project. Without opening up HK to millions of Guamgdong drivers this project is never going to pay.

An extra few million cars on HK's roads - nice...

It isn't as you think actually.


Ok, after your explanation, it seems all 3 cities isn't ready.

The dual track carriage under Tsing Ma Bridge and on Tsing Yi are actually designed to only handle the full capacity of Airport Express and Tung Chung Lines, which is like 21 or somthing trains per hour. This number came out from the study done during that HSR controversy.
Both lines are operating at reserved capacity now, and it is expected to grow in the future.
So injecting more rail traffic on the existing rail system in HK is either going to deteroriate the AR and TCL services in long run, or it requires spending a few more hundred or thousand billions of dollars to build a brand new separate system.


Isn't this illustrated the shortsighted moved in the first place, HK airport looking into building a 3rd runway, (probably cost as much as the airport), how are they going to handle the extra traffics?

HK/China spents lots of money in rail, if there are people, they will have to upgrade its rail/road system.

Wouldn't a very higher number of bus passengers suggest that it would work better in a city with limited urban road space (if you measure success by average journey time per PERSON). If the measure was average vehicle (or rich person) journey time then the system would be a catastrophic failure.

Yes you are right, but a very high number of buses would also mean a very high number of lanes needed. In a dense, space-limited city like Hong Kong, this will definitely cost sky-high.

Isn't this illustrated the shortsighted moved in the first place, HK airport looking into building a 3rd runway, (probably cost as much as the airport), how are they going to handle the extra traffics?

HK/China spents lots of money in rail, if there are people, they will have to upgrade its rail/road system.

No, it wasn't shortsighted. The current two runways were planned to handle air traffic until 2030, 30 years after the opening of the airport, a typical time frame for infrastructure constructions. The projection is subjected to fine tune as time goes, and to provide adequate infrastructure upgrade. The 3rd runway has already been insight for a long time, but it was going to be after 2030, around the 2050 time frame, not something like 2020.
However, projection is just a scientific estimate, and some times professional guesstimate; it is always not 100% accurate. Projection can be right-on, under or over estimate.
The projected air traffic volumes are being reached in less than 15 years now due to the rapid economic boom of China in the past 20 years or so; an environment no one would have thought of 30-40 years ago when the new airport was planned. A reason the 3rd runway has become so hot these days.

On the other hands, the AE and TCL were also planned to handle passenger load in similar time frame; however, the point-to-point bus services between the airport/Tung Chung and the urban areas have taken a big chunk of the demand off the rail system, which wasn't expected. The passenger loads on the two rails are running less than projected, and are operating at reserved capacity these days.

The North Lantau Link, and Tsing Ma Bridges only serve the new town Tung Chung, and the airport, they are nowhere near their capacity. As part of this bridge project, an under water tunnel will be constructed between CLK and Tuen Mun providing a second link to northern Lantau and the mainland to provide better connectivity, not capacity issue. The two Lantau Links combined will have plenty of capacity in the future for both the bridge traffic from western PRD, as well as the expanded airport.

Here's my opinion on this:

The ferry companies (like Turbojet) already hold a strong position in terms of Hong Kong<->Macau travel. In fact, they operate 24/7 and if ever demand increases, they can easily purchase or get more boats.



My point is some people will probably perfer to use rail/buses.

For me, i would perfer to use rail even if it means I have to walk across the platform to change train (because the trains is not compatible with each other), instead of change into a bus, or worse ferry.

Atm, the ferry system is already sufficient.

Agree... At the moment.


So much so that by year 2020 (est. full 100% completion of this bridge), the ferry companies like Turbojet expect that the bridge WILL steal a portion of its client base and revenue stream.

the amount of people will increase every year, its revenue will still increase, just that it cannot take advantage of ALL the increase.


Hence why I said that the rail transport mode for Hong Kong and Macau, while a nice proposition, is imho NOT a dire or absolute requirement. You are right, it is not an absolute requirement.



Human beings cannot live without food or water or oxygen.......but people will still be alive even without the existence of the said rail link.


Yes, and we don't need cars, trains, plane, AC, McDonald and 7 Eleven.


Well, okay, if there are those who want to build a rail link, that is fine. However, who will foot the bill and pay for everything? Government(s)? Taxpayers? A mix of both?


Government's money is Tax payers money.

If it generate income, someone will build it. I remember I read it somewhere, without the rail, the ROI of the bridge will be like 50 years, with rail, the ROI will be about 20 years. There is money to be make, I don't think it has got anything to do with finding a investor.


Or everything from the private sector? Yet, it begs a question: are there any private companies brave enough that would want to shoulder billions for such an endeavor? Yes? No?

Just how much are we talking about, the 6 lane bridge cost US$7B, how much would it cost to add rail? We can terminate at the border for the time being, and connect later when we have demand, and it should not take long.

Anyway, the decision has already been made, just imo, whatever is the additional cost, adding/include rail should deliver more benefit.

It might deliver more benefit, but will it be able to outweigh the expenses used to build the rail?

It might deliver more benefit, but will it be able to outweigh the expenses used to build the rail?

When I said ir deliver more benefit, I did consider the payback time.

But some of these extra benefit comes from stealing the customers from the ferry operators. I don't know how do you balanced that.

I'm a bit doubtful whether there is enough cargo to sustain a rail operation. The bridge is primarily designed to open up the western part of the delta for development. I guess they can always add a rail lane once enough factories are set up to sustain a rail vs. truck mode of freight movement.

Alternatively, they can do a rail link for passengers and goods go on trucks instead.

I'm a bit doubtful whether there is enough cargo to sustain a rail operation. The bridge is primarily designed to open up the western part of the delta for development. I guess they can always add a rail lane once enough factories are set up to sustain a rail vs. truck mode of freight movement.

Once you open it for development, the factory will be set up in a few years. It wont take long.

But if there is any plan to add rail later, it has to be engineered as such now. The structual support of bridge with rail may be somewhat different.

Once you open it for development, the factory will be set up in a few years. It wont take long.

But if there is any plan to add rail later, it has to be engineered as such now. The structual support of bridge with rail may be somewhat different.

True ... better to pre-build to expect it and adding rails later won't be too difficult.

Agreed also. Leave some open space for it to grow. You can always add rail, or more lanes if rails won't work.

Once you open it for development, the factory will be set up in a few years. It wont take long.

But if there is any plan to add rail later, it has to be engineered as such now. The structual support of bridge with rail may be somewhat different.

There are countless empty factories in Dongguan where facilities and support environment is better. Huizhou also has plenty of cheep land and is very close to Yantian.

Nansha port is growing rapidly and one shipping line has shifted 30% of their ships to go there rather than HK - A trend that will continue.

The bridge is not needed for freight as the ports have already moved across the border.

It is only really needed to allow millions of mainland registered vehicles to drive to Hong Kong.

There are countless empty factories in Dongguan where facilities and support environment is better. Huizhou also has plenty of cheep land and is very close to Yantian.



Why is the factories empty.

My wife comes from Huizhou, when I go visit my inlaws, I also found that more and more factory closed down.



Nansha port is growing rapidly and one shipping line has shifted 30% of their ships to go there rather than HK - A trend that will continue.

The bridge is not needed for freight as the ports have already moved across the border.



don't knwo much about Nansha port, and could not find much information online.

It is only really needed to allow millions of mainland registered vehicles to drive to Hong Kong.

I found that a very strange belief. HK has existing road connection to mainland, and this does not seems to happen.

Why is the factories empty.

My wife comes from Huizhou, when I go visit my inlaws, I also found that more and more factory closed down.

Operating costs are getting more and more expensive in Dongguang these days. Land premium, rents, labour cost, cost of living, taxes (especially on the environmental side), etc. It is at a point the factories aren't making enough to cover the cost with reasonable profit, so these factories are moving outward into the west side of PRD, or further north away from the PRD to find cheaper land, and labour.

The same thing happened before when factories clustered on the northern edge of Shenzhen, and moved out to Dongguang for the same reason. But this time with SZ and GZ both infilling Dongguang where sits in between the two cities, just moving north of Dongguang things aren't getting cheaper, but it is either west of the PRD or north of GZ, much further away from the logistic hub in HK and SZ.

In the past two to three decades, north-south connection have been important to move goods and people between GZ and HK, but it the next few decades, the east-west connection will also come in-place. This bridge between HK, Macau, and ZH is one of the important links, along with one or two more further north ensuring the logistic around the PRD to be efficient.


I found that a very strange belief. HK has existing road connection to mainland, and this does not seems to happen.

Longershanks always has a nightmare about the boarder opens up with a flood of vehicles rush in HK cloggin up the road network in HK, which is not going to happen in any time near the future. The more your read about his posts, you will get his/her idea.

Operating costs are getting more and more expensive in Dongguang these days.

Operating cost could be a reason, not so sure if rents are high when so many factory closed down. Problem of finding people working for them is a reason.

Even after so many factory close down, the remaining are understaffed.

Operating costs are getting more and more expensive in Dongguang these days. Land premium, rents, labour cost, cost of living, taxes (especially on the environmental side), etc. It is at a point the factories aren't making enough to cover the cost with reasonable profit, so these factories are moving outward into the west side of PRD, or further north away from the PRD to find cheaper land, and labour.

Is there any evidence (data) that companies are relocating to the western side of the PRD? With many empty factories Donggaun is probably cheaper to start-up and easier to get employees than a greenfield site miles from anywhere.

The minimum wage is exactly the same in Zhuhai, Donggaun amd Zhongshan.

If businesses do relocate from DG to ZH why would they suddenly switch their preferred port to Hong Kong when it is more expensive and more difficult to use than Nansha, Shekou or Yantian with or without the bridge?

If the bridge had been built 20 years ago it would probably been a huge success but time has passed it by.

Bridge traffic already running into problems (http://www.scmp.com/portal/site/SCMP/menuitem.2af62ecb329d3d7733492d9253a0a0a0/?vgnextoid=2281197dc6f4f210VgnVCM100000360a0a0aRCRD&ss=Columns+%26+Insight&s=Opinion)
LEADER
Apr 14, 2011

Integrating Hong Kong and the mainland is about bringing down barriers. The bridge that will link our city with Zhuhai and Macau will be a big part of that, but its success depends on large numbers of vehicles from both sides using it. Construction is well advanced, but it is clear that in the rush to get work under way, little thought was given to the complications of getting traffic onto it. Just five years before its scheduled opening, the most rudimentary of schemes, trialling of a cross-border permit at a single checkpoint, has seemingly stalled.

The ad hoc licence scheme was proposed in 2008 and supposed to be put to the test at Shenzhen Bay at the end of last year. But there are obvious hitches on both sides and co-ordinating meetings have barely sputtered to life. Just as they were to get underway last month, the head of the mainland delegation was named to take over from disgraced railways minister Liu Zhijun . As it will take some time for his replacement to get up to speed on the issues, progress is not likely before the end of the year at the earliest.

Clearly this is unsatisfactory considering how much will be spent. If the bridge is going to pay off, it has to be used by as much traffic as possible. Allowing a free flow across both sides of the border would immediately open the possibility of 7.4 million vehicles. But continuing gridlock in talks would mean that just 14,000 a day would turn onto the 73 billion yuan (HK$86.74 billion) structure.

The number is so low because cross-border plates for vehicles are a privilege. At present, they are available only to top officials and some politicians, big investors and those willing to pay a high price. Hong Kong wants such travel to be possible for anyone with a driving licence, but the lucrative illegal market maintained by licence brokers has meant reluctance on the mainland side to such an idea. With licences that should be free being traded for more than HK$700,000, there is much to gain from the current inertia.

Then there are the challenges on our side. Hong Kong officials say they are eager for the green light, but there are myriad unresolved problems. Leaving aside concerns about the competence of mainland drivers, there is the question of how many to allow on our congested roads. That we open our arms wide to tourists is one matter; flooding our streets with their cars is quite another.

Then there is the mainland driving on the opposite side of the road to Hong Kong and our vehicles being right-hand drive, road safety, vehicle road worthiness, fuel quality, emission controls, customs, immigration - the list goes on. These are complicated issues for Hong Kong to deal with, let alone to enforce on vehicles coming from elsewhere. We have got a legislative process with a tendency to move slowly. It has to be wondered whether thorough consideration to these essentials was given during the feasibility study for the bridge.

That is not to say that two-way traffic across the border is not possible. There is the model of what Britain and continental Europe did after the Channel Tunnel was opened in 1994 to follow. The circumstances are not the same, but a number of the challenges were dealt with. It proves that such links, with the right preparation, can be smoothly put in place.

A lot of financial and political capital has been put into the bridge. With work under way, there is no turning back. Whether it is justified or not is no longer at issue. Making sure as many vehicles as possible can use it when it opens has to be a matter of importance for governments on both sides of the border.

The 1st sentence sums up the purpose of the bridge - it is an integration project.

Is there any evidence (data) that companies are relocating to the western side of the PRD? With many empty factories Donggaun is probably cheaper to start-up and easier to get employees than a greenfield site miles from anywhere.



the idea is, once the bridge is complete, it is no longer greefield site miles from anywhere.


If businesses do relocate from DG to ZH why would they suddenly switch their preferred port to Hong Kong when it is more expensive and more difficult to use than Nansha, Shekou or Yantian with or without the bridge?


Why does it need to be relocation, why can't new factory be set up as new business?



If the bridge had been built 20 years ago it would probably been a huge success but time has passed it by. before the handover? I don't think so.

the idea is, once the bridge is complete, it is no longer greefield site miles from anywhere.

A field in in rural Taishan is still less appealing than a city factor in Donggaun for a migrant worker now they have disposable income. Being closer to HK by road does not change that. This is an integration project not a freight project.

Why does it need to be relocation, why can't new factory be set up as new business?

Why would a new factory use HK ports?

http://jmsc.hku.hk/jmsc6030/bridgestory/dossier/map/#
http://international.fhwa.dot.gov/pubs/pl08020/images/figure_9.jpg

A field in in rural Taishan is still less appealing than a city factor in Donggaun for a migrant worker now they have disposable income. Being closer to HK by road does not change that. This is an integration project not a freight project.


I am a little more optimistic about these chinese rural cities than you, most rural cities will eventually get its chance to bloom.

Been closer to HK could be a factor to speed up.

Dongguan may be a good location, but if the world bloom again, these empty factories will eventually filled up.


Why would a new factory use HK ports?

http://jmsc.hku.hk/jmsc6030/bridgestory/dossier/map/#


depends on where you are, possibly because it will end up to be cheaper.

I can't find many informations about your beloved Nan Shan cargo port, so I don't know how much ship will eventually moved form HK to Nansha.

Abridged
The Standard
Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Construction work on the giant bridge linking Hong Kong to Zhuhai and Macau may be further delayed after the High Court ruled an environmental impact assessment was not done properly.

The judge ruled in favor of Tung Chung resident Chu Yee-wah, 65, who filed a judicial review.

Court of First Instance Justice Joseph Fok ordered the permits for some infrastructure work granted by director of environmental protection Anissa Wong Sean-yee in 2009 to be quashed.

Justice Fok said the absence of an analysis of the environmental conditions without the project in place in the assessment reports means they do not comply with a government technical memorandum and the study briefs of the project.

"It therefore follows that the director had no power to approve them, nor did she have power to grant the environmental permits" for the parts of the project questioned.

He said it is "highly material" for the director and public to know the predicted nitrogen dioxide levels with and without the projects in place so that the director can determine whether those increases are acceptable.

In so doing, he said, the public can be made aware of the extent to which the proposed project will change the environmental conditions.

The Environmental Protection Department said it will study the judgment and seek legal advice on its next step.

Hong Kong construction work on the bridge was scheduled to start early this year and be completed by 2016.

A spokesman for the Transport and Housing Bureau said: "We will continue to press ahead with the advance works of the local projects, and will look into ways on how to carry forward the works - such as to proceed or complete the works in phases - to endeavor to tie in with the target of completing and commissioning the bridge in 2016."

The assessment reports are on the boundary crossing facilities to be built on reclaimed land in the northeastern waters near Chek Lap Kok and a nearby link road.

Construction was due to start in the third quarter last year but has not yet started, while the link road was slated to be built from this year.

A member of the Legislative Council's panel on transport, Lau Kong-wah, said the later the start of the construction work, the higher the cost may go.

Another panel member, Wong Sing- chi, said the government should not appeal the decision and instead fix the problems in the environmental assessment as soon as possible.

Solicitor Wong Hok-ming, who represented Chu, said he is satisfied with the ruling.

Although the bridge will enhance the economic development of the Pearl River Delta, he insisted the environmental impact assessment of such a large-scale development must not be "carelessly done."

Wong, a member of the Civic Party, denied Chu has any political affiliation, though she had volunteered for the party.

I am a little more optimistic about these chinese rural cities than you, most rural cities will eventually get its chance to bloom.

Been closer to HK could be a factor to speed up.


Is that enough to justify the huge expenditure. Not seen any independent analysis of future traffic figures. It is being built now so just have to see how many cars can be encouraged to use it. All that reclamation isn't for a few tourist buses.

I think it's more for cargo than tourism though.

Is that enough to justify the huge expenditure. Not seen any independent analysis of future traffic figures. It is being built now so just have to see how many cars can be encouraged to use it. All that reclamation isn't for a few tourist buses.

The toll on the bridge will need to deliver some income. How are you going to measure the potential economic benefits the bridge brings to the west?

Roads, bridge, rail, etc should not always be seen as a standalone project, governments builds lots of bridges and road and did not even charge a toll, where is the justification?

The bridge will benefit plenty of peoples indirectly, the extra employments, hence income, consumptions, etc must have been accounted for and the cost is surely justified.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge takes almost 60 years to be fully paid off.

The toll on the bridge will need to deliver some income. How are you going to measure the potential economic benefits the bridge brings to the west?

Roads, bridge, rail, etc should not always be seen as a standalone project, governments builds lots of bridges and road and did not even charge a toll, where is the justification?

The bridge will benefit plenty of peoples indirectly, the extra employments, hence income, consumptions, etc must have been accounted for and the cost is surely justified.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge takes almost 60 years to be fully paid off.

Totally agree. The indirect benefit just can't be estimated correctly, the estimated benefits are just based on a bunch of assumptions that who knows what will happen in the future. However, the general public, like Longershanks, and unfortunately the LegCo of HK both always see infrastructure investments like this bridge or the HSR as standalone project, and have the belief the project should financially self-sustain in order to build, ignoring the indirect economic and social benefit that the project will contribute.

If I remember correctly, the toll income alone will pay off the construction cost in about 50 years time, but it may have brings hundreds fold in indirect benefits.

THB's response to court's judgement on Judicial Review in respect of environmental impact assessment of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge
Monday, April 18, 2011
Government Press Release

In response to media enquiries on the judgement handed down by the High Court on a judicial review case in respect of the environmental impact assessment of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB), a spokesman for the Transport and Housing Bureau said:

“The HZMB project is a cross-boundary transport infrastructure project that has been under planning for a long time. It has very important strategic value in terms of further enhancement of the economic integration and development between Hong Kong and the Mainland. The commissioning of the project will bring a new era for the transportation connections between Hong Kong and the Mainland. The HZMB will not only inject impetus to Hong Kong's long-term economic development, but also bring new opportunities to the various key sectors in Hong Kong, including tourism, financial, trade, commercial and logistics industries etc.

Among the seven contentions which the applicant raised in the judicial review application, we noted that the Court did not accept six of them which were related to environmental standards. The Court made its ruling on the ground that the Government had only provided the projected environmental conditions with the project in place and had failed to present separate data on the environmental conditions without the project in place.

We will study the judgement and its implications before deciding how to handle the aforesaid procedural issue, having regard to the requirements of the law, as soon as possible. Works of the Main Bridge have already commenced. We will continue to press ahead with the advance works of the local projects, and will look into ways on how to carry forward the works, such as to proceed or complete the works in phases, to endeavour to tie in with the target of completing and commissioning the Bridge in 2016.

Totally agree. The indirect benefit just can't be estimated correctly, the estimated benefits are just based on a bunch of assumptions that who knows what will happen in the future. However, the general public, like Longershanks, and unfortunately the LegCo of HK both always see infrastructure investments like this bridge or the HSR as standalone project, and have the belief the project should financially self-sustain in order to build, ignoring the indirect economic and social benefit that the project will contribute.

If I remember correctly, the toll income alone will pay off the construction cost in about 50 years time, but it may have brings hundreds fold in indirect benefits.

I think the general public are a little dubious about the numbers. Not that it will / will not have social benefits including the integration of Jong Kong into China.

Top court appeal over mega bridge
The Standard
Thursday, May 05, 2011

The government is to appeal against a court ruling that quashed the environmental permit for the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau bridge in a move that may further delay construction.

The action will be taken in the Court of Final Appeal this week on the grounds it is not mandatory under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance for the government to assess air quality without the project in place, a source said.

The source said the authorities are also preparing to counter the High Court's claim that the assessment report is "substandard" and that the government needs to reassess the environmental impact of proposed boundary-crossing facilities.

Last month, Chu Yee-wah, a 65-year-old Tung Chung resident who is in poor health, successfully argued the Environmental Protection Department had failed to conduct the necessary assessments before granting permits for the construction of the mega bridge, which passes close to her residence.

Chu's lawyer, Alan Wong Hok-ming, said yesterday the legal battle could drag on for six months or more.

Work on the Hong Kong section of the bridge was scheduled to begin late last year and be completed in 2016, but work has not yet started because of the lawsuit.

Meanwhile, the earlier High Court ruling has had a knock-on effect, with the MTR Corp withdrawing impact assessment reports for its Sha Tin-Central rail link.

A transport advisory body had raised concerns over the progress of the 17-kilometer line.

Transport Advisory Committee chairman Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung said if many changes are needed, the railway operator may postpone the public consultation exercise scheduled to end early next year.

Party lines drawn as Tsang hits out over bridge blow
The Standard
Friday, May 20, 2011

The chief executive yesterday accused political parties of using environmental protection to disrupt major infrastructure projects, hindering social prosperity and putting Hong Kong at risk of being marginalized.

Donald Tsang Yam-kuen did not name any particular party but it was evident he was referring to the Civic Party, which allegedly helped a 66-year-old Tung Chung woman in her successful judicial review of the legality of the environmental assessment report for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

"I am aware of some opinions from the community that some political party politicians are using legal action and other means to disrupt major infrastructure just before kickoff in the name of environmental protection and conservation," Tsang said. "They do so regardless of whether it undermines the overall and long-term interest of Hong Kong for their political objectives.

"The public is tired of unceasing political fights and outrageous slogans. We need more people to do useful work for Hong Kong."

But Tsang said the administration respects the rule of law and will use legal means to solve the challenges.

He said later it is difficult to quantify losses arising from the delay in construction of the bridge but the government could lose as much as HK$2 billion a year in revenue.

He also said assessment reports for another 80 projects may have to be redone, causing further delays.

Tsang's remarks were supported by lawmaker Lau Kong- wah of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, who condemned a party, which he did not name, for "abusing judicial procedures" to delay the construction of infrastructure approved by the Legislative Council.

Civic Party lawmaker Alan Leong Kah-kit said Tsang's remarks show a lack of respect for the rule of law.

"Lawmakers had warned of the legality of the current environmental impact assessment procedures but the government turned a deaf ear," Leong said.

Democratic Party chairman Albert Ho Chun-yan said Tsang's remarks are "extremely regrettable" as they could put pressure on the impartiality of the judicial system.

New People Party chairwoman and former government official Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee said: "There is no way the judicial procedures are being abused."

The administration has appealed against the High Court ruling and estimates construction will be delayed for at least half a year.

Party lines drawn as Tsang hits out over bridge blow
The Standard
Friday, May 20, 2011

The chief executive yesterday accused political parties of using environmental protection to disrupt major infrastructure projects, hindering social prosperity and putting Hong Kong at risk of being marginalized.



What takes you so long, Donald.

I agree, and hate people that keep on disrupt major projects, they know it will eventually get done one way or another, these group should be make to pay for all the economic loss for the disruption.

I do hope this bridge get build,Pearl river delta is competiting with yangtze,if the area lag behind on anything,they lose the competition, afew naive people are stoping hundreds of people getting job for operating and constructing on such bridge.

There is no doubt the bridge will get built, but just after due process is done.

Builders fear project politics toll
The Standard
Monday, May 23, 2011

A union for construction workers is calling for an end to the politicizing of construction projects, saying it is putting more than 140,000 jobs at risk.

And to drive their point home, some 30 members of the Hong Kong Construction Industry Employees General Union marched to SAR government headquarters yesterday.

The group said court challenges against environmental impact assessments of various projects are threatening their jobs because of the delays caused. The union claims the 140,000 figure was reached by taking into account the more than 70 projects delayed this year.

These projects include the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, the MTR's Sha Tin-to-Central Link, and six roads.

"If they really want to do a more comprehensive environmental study, they should have done it much earlier," said Hong Kong Construction Industry Bar-Bending Workers Union chairman Luk Kwan-ngai.

"Having such a study after a project has been announced is just politicking."

Luk said the delays have come at a bad time, as more people have recently shown an interest in joining the industry because of the pay increase announced this year.

Negotiations with employers have resulted in the Bar-Bending Workers Union securing a pay hike that will see members paid HK$1,360 a day by 2013. And with the government announcing it was earmarking HK$49.6 billion for various projects, some 62,500 jobs stood to be created.

But Luk said the project delays have seen employers incur additional costs, making them unwilling to increase wages.

The bar benders' union claims that the need for environmental impact studies is causing delays to HK$112 billion worth of projects.

HKCIEGU chairman Chow Luen-kiu estimated that industry unemployment rates will triple to 18.5 percent in the absence of an improvement in the situation. Chow said it would be difficult for construction workers like bar benders, carpenters and welders to find new jobs because their skills are specific to the industry.

Transport secretary Eva Cheng Yu-wah said on Wednesday she is working with the Environmental Protection Department to improve assessments on the rail project, which is already two years behind schedule.

In April, a wrench was thrown in the works of the bridge project when a 66-year-old Tung Chung woman was allegedly helped by a political party in her successful judicial review of the legality of its EIA report.

What takes you so long, Donald.

I agree, and hate people that keep on disrupt major projects, they know it will eventually get done one way or another, these group should be make to pay for all the economic loss for the disruption.

Some would argue that as the bridge may never be financially viable these people are saving HK money from being wasted. The figures on the bridge look a little optimistic and not doing a before / after environmental study was less than sensible.

I do hope this bridge get build,Pearl river delta is competiting with yangtze,if the area lag behind on anything,they lose the competition, afew naive people are stoping hundreds of people getting job for operating and constructing on such bridge.

I'm not in a fully-informed position to give an accurate opinion, but I think that if the negative environmental effects outweigh immediate economic benefits, then it should be given more thought - because increased vehicular traffic = increased congestion = increased pollution = more people with health issues = lost productivity

What takes you so long, Donald.

I agree, and hate people that keep on disrupt major projects, they know it will eventually get done one way or another, these group should be make to pay for all the economic loss for the disruption.

Well those groups of people already stopped a few major skyscraper projects (something like the Gateway III tower), I guess they could use those kinds of "successes" to motivate themselves.:nuts:

I'm not in a fully-informed position to give an accurate opinion

That is because someone in HK Gov decided not to do the before/after survey so NO ONE is informed. Also no comments about where all the mainland drivers who come over will park, how congestion in the CBD's will be managed etc. It will probably be easier to change the law and state something like 'projects in the national interest do not need a before and after environmental survey'. These integration projects are in the national interest.

Clearly, there is a problem with the environmental assessment and the courts have affirmed that. Just because a project is of national interest does not give the government an excuse to bulldoze its way through wrecklessly. What would be next - expel people from their homes because their homes will now be destroyed for a national interest project without consultation and adequate compensation?

Clearly, there is a problem with the environmental assessment and the courts have affirmed that. Just because a project is of national interest does not give the government an excuse to bulldoze its way through wrecklessly. What would be next - expel people from their homes because their homes will now be destroyed for a national interest project without consultation and adequate compensation?

Perhaps Donald Tsang can appoint himself 广东省香港市委书记 or something. :bowtie:

Clearly, there is a problem with the environmental assessment and the courts have affirmed that. Just because a project is of national interest does not give the government an excuse to bulldoze its way through wrecklessly. What would be next - expel people from their homes because their homes will now be destroyed for a national interest project without consultation and adequate compensation?

Man,this is a bridge crossing over the sea,most pollution are diverted to the surrounding ocean, how much pollution can that bridge create to the local people, I dont see it would affect anyone much.

Man,this is a bridge crossing over the sea,most pollution are diverted to the surrounding ocean, how much pollution can that bridge create to the local people, I dont see it would affect anyone much.

There is a section that will be built offshore from Tung Chung, where reclamation works will also take place to create a huge island for border control facilities. All that construction will take place within viewing distance from the housing estates in the new town.

Clearly, there is a problem with the environmental assessment and the courts have affirmed that. Just because a project is of national interest does not give the government an excuse to bulldoze its way through wrecklessly. What would be next - expel people from their homes because their homes will now be destroyed for a national interest project without consultation and adequate compensation?

Yeah;

I don't really understand why people in China are so up in arms about the need to do environment impact studies, in places like US it is pretty much done routinely and thoroughly without complaint. Why wasn't this study properly done in the first place, and why can't the government just do it and get it over with instead of arguing it out in the court. I don't think that benefits anyone.

In other news, here's Macau's perspective on the new bridge:

http://www.macaunews.com.mo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1295&Itemid=47

They are certainly feeling very positive about the prospect.

Yeah;

I don't really understand why people in China are so up in arms about the need to do environment impact studies, \

imo, they are not...

some doesn't believe the bridge will benefit, they think is a waste of money, so come up with all excuse to attempt to stop any more progress.

this sort of excuse will never stop.

Yeah;

I don't really understand why people in China are so up in arms about the need to do environment impact studies, in places like US it is pretty much done routinely and thoroughly without complaint. Why wasn't this study properly done in the first place, and why can't the government just do it and get it over with instead of arguing it out in the court. I don't think that benefits anyone.

In other news, here's Macau's perspective on the new bridge:

http://www.macaunews.com.mo/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1295&Itemid=47

They are certainly feeling very positive about the prospect.

The problem is not so much with conducting an environmental assessment, but rather what they're considering in this assesment and whether it's adequate.

Tsang a sore loser over bridge delay
25 May 2011
South China Morning Post

Since a High Court judge threw out the environmental impact assessment of key projects for the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge, critics have singled out Civic Party vice-chairman Albert Lai Kwong-tak, a veteran green campaigner, as an opponent of development and integration with the mainland. They have a right to express their opinion. The mainland has already begun building the main span of the bridge, so concerns about a delay on our side are understandable. But it was surprising to hear Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen not only echoing these views, but criticising the decision of opponents to take the matter to court.

Tsang said on Thursday during a question-and-answer session in the Legislative Council that "a certain party and politicians" were using the courts to further their political interests by blocking major projects on environmental grounds and ignoring the interests of Hong Kong.

If the retired Tung Chung resident who applied for the judicial review - with the support of the Civic Party - had lost the case, Tsang's comment would still have been provocative. But the point in this case, surely, is that the Tung Chung resident won. The judge ruled that the director of environmental protection had no power to approve the impact assessment reports in the absence of separate analysis of likely environmental conditions if the projects were not built.

The court would not have accepted the application for a judicial review if it had had no legal merit. Moreover, the application, by a diabetic woman with a heart condition who said that the extra traffic would affect her health, raised issues of public interest. The ruling in her favour shows the challenge was not vexatious.

That said, the multibillion-dollar bridge across the Pearl River estuary might now be delayed for months. We do need to get things done. Indeed, Hong Kong prides itself on a deserved reputation for delivering big infrastructure projects. Tsang says more than 70 other projects now face being held up because of the ruling. But everyone affected by new projects should have access to the law. In this case, the ruling showed the government was not going about it the right way. A flaw in the process has been identified. The risk that many projects may now be held up shows the importance of getting it right.

As chief executive, Tsang should think carefully about making such public statements, especially since the courts have still to hear an appeal by the government against the ruling. He must be careful not to create a perception that the courts might have been influenced by his remarks. His concern with advancing the city's interests by getting things done is understandable. But his comments send the wrong message. Our best interests are served by the rule of law under an independent judiciary. It is, after all, one of the things that sets Hong Kong apart as a place to do business.

New route taken on giant bridge appeal
The Standard
Wednesday, August 24, 2011

The Highways Department is not required to carry out a separate environmental impact assessment of the likely air quality if the giant Hong Kong- Macau-Zhuhai bridge is not built.

That is the argument the Court of Appeal heard yesterday, after environmental protection director Anissa Wong Sean-yee challenged a Court of First Instance verdict quashing her decision to approve the construction of key elements of the Hong Kong section of the bridge.

Wong's lawyer, senior counsel Benjamin Yu, said the EIA study briefs issued by her do not require the Highways Department, as the project proposer, to conduct such an analysis.

Court vice president Justice Robert Tang Ching then asked if the director could refuse to approve an EIA report if she finds the project's forecast emission levels to be too high.

Yu said the government's technical memorandum on assessments says the director shall - not "may" - approve EIA reports after public inspection and consultation with the Advisory Council on the Environment, if required.

Wong's appeal came after the lower court found in April that impact assessments of two key construction projects were not conducted properly. It ruled in favor of Tung Chung resident Chu Yee-wah, 65, who filed a judicial review saying vehicular pollution on the bridge would worsen her health.

The EIA reports concern boundary- crossing facilities to be built on reclaimed land in waters northeast of Chek Lap Kok and a nearby link road.

Court of First Instance judge Joseph Fok had on April 18 ordered the permits for the two infrastructure works that Wong granted in 2009 to be quashed.

He said the absence in the EIA reports of an analysis of environmental conditions without the project in place means the reports do not comply with a government technical memorandum and the study briefs of the project.

Justice Fok said it is "highly material" for the director and public to know the projected nitrogen dioxide levels with and without the project in place - so the director may determine whether the increases are acceptable.

He added that merely meeting air quality guidelines cannot be the sole determining factor.

The challenge is being heard by Justice Tang, Justice Michael Hartmann and Justice Carlye Chu Fun-ling. The hearing will likely last till tomorrow.

HK government's pet projects based on flawed assumptions
Tung Chung resident's judicial review exposes major shortcomings in the administration's assessment and approval of infrastructure developments
MONITOR
Tom Holland
Sep 01, 2011

The recent judicial review of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge project has highlighted a policy snarl-up, which surpasses even this government's uncanny talent for getting into a tangle.

It calls into question not only the assumptions underpinning the bridge project, but also the economic arguments advanced by the government to justify its other pet infrastructure projects, including the proposed third runway for Hong Kong International Airport.

Things began to go wrong for the government when Tung Chung resident Chu Yee-wah applied for a judicial review of the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau bridge, saying the government's environmental impact assessment of the project failed to meet its own standards for gauging the likely effect on local pollution levels.

The judge agreed and overturned the project approvals granted by the Environmental Protection Department. The government has appealed and a decision is expected towards the end of this month.

But even if the appeal court upholds the original approvals, Chu's challenge exposed major shortcomings in the government's procedures to assess and approve infrastructure projects.

Usually an environmental impact assessment provides a baseline scenario based on recorded data to show what air quality would be like if the project did not go ahead. Then it gives a projection of local air quality with the project in place (and any other projects that are planned) so the public can get an idea of the likely effects.

But the assessment for the bridge project neglected to include this background scenario. It simply asserted that air quality in 2031 with the bridge in place will meet the government's objectives.

There are several big problems with this approach. As the judge in the initial review hearing pointed out, it treats the environment as a bucket into which pollutants can be poured until it is full.

The assessment says nothing about the amount of pollution the bridge and its traffic will actually add to the local atmosphere, which makes it impossible to gauge the environmental cost of the project. That defeats the purpose of the study in the first place.

There are other problems, too. For one thing, there are grave doubts about the use of the government's model for projecting future air quality. In effect it is a black box. The output is only as good as the data put in, and that is questionable.

According to David Renton, an environmental lawyer with legal firm Baker Botts, the model says air quality will meet the government's objectives largely because it assumes pollution levels will fall in line with government policies. Unfortunately, there is no assurance this will happen.

There are flaws, too, with the government's air quality objectives, which dictate acceptable levels for different pollutants. These were fixed in 1987 and have not been changed since, despite an increasing body of evidence that they have been set well above concentrations damaging to human health. That's especially worrying for inhabitants of Tung Chung, where as the charts (pictured) show, atmospheric levels of toxic pollutants commonly exceed levels that the World Health Organisation say should not be passed on more than one day in 100.

And despite what the government says, it is likely that air quality around Tung Chung will deteriorate. Although the environmental impact assessment for the bridge project predicted that local pollution levels will meet the government's present standards in 2031, the assessment did not factor in plans to build a third runway at Chek Lap Kok, which will also add heavily to pollution in the area.

What this indicates is that in making its economic arguments for new infrastructure projects, the government has neglected to factor in environmental costs. In particular, it has failed to account for the future health costs caused by the air quality deterioration they will cause.

Given that the government's economic forecasts for its projects already look stretched, this is a major omission. Add in the environmental and health costs, and it is highly doubtful whether Hong Kong's prized infrastructure projects will bring the city any net economic benefits at all.

tom.holland@scmp.com

http://www.news.gov.hk/en/categories/infrastructure/html/2011/09/20110927_162855.shtml

Transport chief hails bridge ruling
September 27, 2011
Secretary for Transport & Housing Eva Cheng has welcomed the court’s ruling on the environmental impact assessment of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge project, vowing work will start by year's-end.

She spoke to media today after the Court of Appeal overturned a judgment blocking construction of the Hong Kong section of the bridge.

Ms Cheng said the Government will now go ahead with the statutory procedure and funding application. The project has already been delayed by more than a year, boosting costs by $6.5 billion.

She reiterated the Government conducted the environmental impact assessment in accordance with the law, and urged the plaintiff to consider the issue carefully before making an appeal, due to the huge costs involved.

The Environmental Protection Department also welcomed the judgment and said it will continue conducting environmental assessments.

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the video is no longer available, what is it about?

the video is no longer available, what is it about?

This one is available
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This one is available


thanks you, so bad to hear it was delay and waste so much effort, and it is after all, still a political issue.

Civic Party told to be upfront over bridge challenge role
The Standard
Thursday, September 29, 2011

The Civic Party has been urged to be upfront about its role in the failed legal challenge to the environmental assessment for the Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai bridge.

Accusations have been flying that the party was behind the lawsuit lodged by Tung Chung resident Chu Yee-wah, 65.

The review delayed construction of the bridge for months and could add HK$6.5 billion to the original HK$60 billion project.

The Court of Appeal on Tuesday overturned a lower court ruling quashing the environmental protection director's approval of the project.

Although the party's leader, Alan Leong Kah-kit, stressed on Tuesday that the Civic Party had nothing to do with the lawsuit, Liberal Party vice chairwoman Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee said Leong's party owes Hong Kong people an explanation.

The Liberal Party published a statement in several Chinese-language newspapers today to demand an explanation.

Chow said she is skeptical about the Civic Party's role because Chu is a party volunteer and her solicitor, Alan Wong Hok-ming, is also a party member.

The Civic Party has been giving contradictory replies, Chow claimed.

She said that party vice chairman Albert Lai Kwong-tak said the party has never contacted Chu. But Leong has admitted the party has given her advice.

Chow said the party should not "underestimate the public's wisdom" by not explaining up front.

After losing the lawsuit, Chu gave hints that there was someone behind it.

"I had no intention to stir it up. But they told me about it and I was unclear," she said.

Chow said the Civic Party must explain whether it has received any benefits from the lawsuit.

TAC discusses trade licence and progress of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge project
Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Government Press Release Excerpt

The Transport Advisory Committee (TAC) discussed today (November 29) the Government's proposal to introduce a new form of trade licence to facilitate the re-exporting of left-hand drive (LHD) vehicles via Hong Kong, and the progress of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) project.

**********************************

Members were also briefed on the progress of HZMB-related infrastructure projects in Hong Kong, namely the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities, Hong Kong Link Road, and the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link. The HZMB project is a major cross-boundary transport infrastructure project that has a very important strategic value in further enhancing the economic development of Hong Kong, Macao and the Mainland.

"We note the Government's plan to commence works for the projects as soon as possible, so as to tie in with the commissioning of the HZMB Main Bridge in 2016. Members also noted that the Government had started discussion with the relevant Mainland and Macao authorities on the cross-boundary transport arrangements of the HZMB," said Mr Yuen.

TAC members were also updated on the development of various Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) applications to provide traffic information to the public, as well as for traffic control and enforcement.

"Members were pleased to note that the Transport Department (TD) launched the mobile application and website of the Hong Kong eTransport and the mobile website of the Driving Route Search Service in August 2011 and would develop more mobile applications by 2012 to facilitate the general public's access to more traffic information anytime, anywhere for free," said Mr Yuen.

Members also noted that the TD was implementing a project to erect Speed Map Panels at strategic locations in the New Territories to inform motorists of the traffic conditions ahead. These new initiatives to disseminate more real-time traffic information to motorists will help them make better choice of routes, reduce journey time, and will help achieve the overall traffic management objective. Upon the completion of the Traffic and Incident Management System by 2015, the TD will provide even more real-time traffic and transport information to the public.

China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC) has won a HK$6.989bn (£576m) reclamation contract as part of the work for the Hong Kong - Zhuhai - Macao Bridge (HZMB).

The Construction Index
Nov 30, 2011‎

Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong and Aecom Asia are consultants for the scheme.

The reclamation work is for the Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities for the HZMB. The link will be almost 30km long, including almost 22.8km on bridges.

CHEC’s contract will start straightaway and is expected to complete in early 2016. The work involves reclamation of 150ha at the north east of the Hong Kong International Airport for the construction of artificial island. The project also includes construction of about 6,140m of seawall, which is mainly made up of 134 steel sheet pile cellular structure with diameters of 27m or 31m. More than 19 million cubic metres of backfilled materials will be used to support subsequent superstructure construction. The work will use ground treatment technology to achieve the strength within a short period.

Letting the contract had been delayed following a judicial review in relation to air quality issues in the environmental assessments and permits for this and another scheme. The review has now concluded, allowing work to resume. Bringing the schemes back on track is expected to cost at least an additional HK$6.5bn (£536m), which was approved this month. The additional costs include the use of faster construction methods to make up time.

http://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/international-construction-news/hong-kong-lets-576m-reclamation-contract

China completes main structure for artificial island on world longest cross-sea bridge

BEIJING, Dec 8 (APP): China has completed the steel structure for a man-made island, which will help link Hong Kong, Macao and Zhuhai in the world’s longest cross-sea bridge project. The island is part of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, a massive project that will span the Pearl River mouth to connect the three cities through bridges and tunnels. The last of 59 gigantic steel pillars was inserted into the sea on Wednesday morning to mark the boundary of the 300,000-square-meter island, which will be completed after sands and rocks fillings, said Yang Zenglin, a spokesman for the project.

Located near the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, the island is the eastern one of two artificial islands built for the project, reports Xinhua news agency.
The western island, near Macao Special Administrative Region and Zhuhai, a city in Guangdong province, had its main structure completed in September.
A 6-km underwater tunnel will then be built to link the two islands, while bridges will connect the two islands with the three cities, Yang said.
The project, with a total length of 29.6 km, is estimated to cost 73 billion yuan (11.5 billion U.S. dollars) and is expected to complete by the end of 2016.

Bridge funding approved
November 18, 2011
Hong Kong Information Services Department

Secretary for Transport & Housing Eva Cheng today welcomed legislators’ endorsement of $48.5 billion to fund Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge projects.

Speaking to the media after attending a Legislative Council Finance Committee meeting, Ms Cheng said the approval reflects the sentiment of Hong Kong people who do not want to see huge infrastructure projects delayed.

The money will fund Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities, the Hong Kong Link Road as well as the detailed design of Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link.

“For the three funding approvals today we are talking about an addition of 14,000 jobs to be created. We welcome these funding approvals and we will now proceed in earnest,” she said.

“We will start the works before the end of this year. Our target now is to complete these facilities in line with the main bridge completion of 2016."

Although the start of the works has been delayed for a year, Ms Cheng said the administration will catch up on the progress through the compression of programmes, and by implementing additional machinery and manpower.

Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge infrastructure projects in Hong Kong commenced
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Government Press Release

The Chief Executive, Mr Donald Tsang, officiated at the launching ceremony of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities (HKBCF) today (December 14). The launch of the project signifies a significant step toward further economic integration and development among Hong Kong, the Western Pearl River Delta and Macao.

"The HZMB is the first major cross-boundary infrastructure project jointly undertaken by Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. With the active participation and involvement of the three governments, a consensus was reached on construction, financing and operation of the project beneficial to all the concerned parties. It is a fine example of co-operation of the three places," Mr Tsang said.

"Upon commissioning, the HZMB will usher in a new era of traffic connections between Hong Kong and the Mainland. The Western Pearl River Delta will fall within a reachable three-hour commuting radius of Hong Kong. This will provide impetus to Hong Kong's long-term economic development and bring new opportunities to various sectors of Hong Kong, including the tourism, financial, trading, commercial and logistics industries."

Implementation of the works of the HZMB in Hong Kong will create many job opportunities. The works that have already obtained funding support from the Legislative Council will create more than 14 000 jobs. The works for the HKBCF commencing today will create about 9 290 jobs, including about 1 410 professional and technical staff and 7 880 labourers.

The HKBCF artificial island, covering some 150 hectares, will be located at the north-eastern waters off Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). Being the gateway to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region by the HZMB, it will provide efficient and convenient services to inbound and outbound passengers and vehicles.

The HKBCF will be equipped with a comprehensive road system connecting HKIA and Tung Chung New Town, and will also be linked to a strategic road network leading to the Northwest New Territories and other areas of Hong Kong, making the HKBCF a strategic multi-modal transportation hub for Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macao.

In addition, to minimise the environmental impact of the reclamation, a non-dredging seawall construction method will be used for the first time in Hong Kong for the HKBCF reclamation works. The method will make it unnecessary to dredge the soft marine mud in the seabed before backfilling. Instead, interlocked large-diameter steel cells, to be backfilled with inert construction and demolition materials, will be sunk, penetrating through the marine mud and resting on the underlying firmer alluvium to form the perimeter seawall. Reclamation works could thus be carried out at the centre.

This innovative reclamation method can avoid large-scale dredging and disposal of marine deposits. As a result, the release of marine suspended solids and disruption to marine traffic will be minimised.

The Chief Executive added that although the HZMB local projects had been delayed by almost a year because of judicial review, the Government would compress the work schedule through adjustment of construction methods and deployment of additional manpower and machinery.

The Government is confident that the works will be completed as scheduled to meet the target of commissioning the HZMB Main Bridge in 2016.

This is an amazing projects

A little off topic, but I have a question. Will cars from Hong Kong be able to drive to Macau without a mainland chinese license plate and vice versa? I think personally that they should let that happen.

A little off topic, but I have a question. Will cars from Hong Kong be able to drive to Macau without a mainland chinese license plate and vice versa? I think personally that they should let that happen.

this is interesting, I think HK<>Macau will be easier then HK<>ZH or MA<>ZH.

this is interesting, I think HK<>Macau will be easier then HK<>ZH or MA<>ZH.

Hopefully!

Bridge en route as work starts on new island
The Standard
Thursday, December 15, 2011

The bridge project linking Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai reached an early milestone yesterday with construction starting on a 150-hectare artificial island near the airport.

The Hong Kong section of the project was delayed for a year by a legal challenge over its environmental impact. The artificial island will be built in the waters northeast of Hong Kong International Airport to house the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of the 30-kilometer Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen said work will be speeded up to ensure the project is completed by 2016. Given the delay, the government will amend construction methods and use additional machinery and manpower.

"Construction of the bridge not only will reduce transportation time and cost for travelers and goods on roads, through its connection, the western Pearl River Delta will fall within a reachable three-hour commuting radius of Hong Kong," Tsang said.

The boundary crossing facilities will be located next to the airport and Tung Chung. It will connect Zhuhai and Macau via the Hong Kong Link Road and main bridge.

Sun Ziyu, president of China Harbour Engineering Co, which is responsible for the reclamation works, said potential challenges include the size of the project and the time to complete the job.

"Because it's near Hong Kong International Airport, we cannot only think about our work, [but] flights, airlines and security are top priorities," Sun said.

A non-dredge seawall construction method is being used to build the island, meaning soft marine mud on the seabed is not removed. So the amount of marine mud to be disposed of is reduced by 97 percent.

The government received the green light in September to build the bridge after the Court of Appeal overturned a lower court ruling quashing the environmental protection director's approval for the project.

The appeal judges unanimously overturned the Court of First Instance ruling on a judicial review alleging government failure to conduct proper environmental impact assessments of the crossing facilities and the Hong Kong Link Road. The review was filed in January last year by a Tung Chung resident, Chu Yee-wah, 65.

Two months later, legislators approved HK$48.5 billion in funding for the project. The money is used to fund Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities and the Hong Kong Link Road, as well as the detailed design of the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link.

A Transport Department spokesman said construction of the Hong Kong Link Road will start early next year. It is a dual three-lane carriageway 12 kilometers long. Macau and Zhuhai have already started work on their sections of the bridge.

Pearl River Delta Bridge work begins
15/12/2011 20:42:00
Macau Daily Times

Construction of the delayed RMB 72.9 billion bridge connecting Hong Kong to Macau and Zhuhai began on Wednesday, after the project was delayed for a year by a legal challenge regarding its environmental impact.

The work will be rushed to meet a 2016 deadline, said Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam Kuen. The HKSAR would catch up on the progress through the compression of programs, and by implementing additional machinery and manpower, he said.

The authorities held a brief launching ceremony on the eastern side of Chek Lap Kok airport. The ceremony marked the beginning of the construction of Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities, the budget of which reaches HKD 30.4 billion.

A 150-hectare artificial island will be built in the waters northeast of Hong Kong International Airport to house the boundary crossing facilities. This is the most important project with the largest investment among the Hong Kong section’s three major projects.

The other two, the Hong Kong Link Road as well as the detailed design of Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link and Tuen Mun Western Bypass, are altogether expected to cost HKD 48.5 billion.

Construction of the Hong Kong section was originally planned to start in late 2010, but was delayed after a retired resident living near the bridge site challenged the government’s decision.

Tsang said the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge is strategically important to further facilitate the economic integration and development of the three territories. The project is expected to reduce transportation time by 60 to 80 percent for travellers and goods as well as transportation costs.

Upon completion of the bridge, western Pearl River Delta cities will fall within a three-hour commuting radius of Hong Kong, Tsang said, adding that HKSAR investors will have plenty of business opportunities in the region, rich in human and land resources.

The bridge, with a total length of 29.6 km, will be the world’s longest cross-sea bridge. The authorities of the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong and Macau will share the cost with the MSAR taking up 12.5 percent of the total.

LCQ3: Nature Conservation
Government Press Release Excerpt
Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Following is a question by the Hon Cheung Hok-ming and a reply by the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Edward Yau, in the Legislative Council today (January 18):

Question:

The authorities have already implemented the New Nature Conservation Policy for more than seven years, and only the projects at two sites of conservation value (i.e. Fung Yuen and Long Valley respectively) have been included under the Management Agreement (MA) Scheme so far; and there has not been any case of successful application for the Public-private Partnership (PPP) Pilot Scheme. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(b) as I have learnt that the Advisory Council on the Environment has earlier indicated its support for the Sha Lo Tung project in Tai Po and the Fung Lok Wai development project in Yuen Long under the PPP Pilot Scheme, yet so far there has not been any progress in implementing such projects, of the reasons for that; and

(b) For part (b) of the question, under the PPP scheme, developments of an agreed scale and plan would be allowed at the ecologically less sensitive portions of the 12 priority sites provided that the developer undertakes to conserve and manage the rest of the site that is ecologically more sensitive on a long-term basis. This scheme not only encourages the participation of private sectors and NGOs in nature conservation, but also balances development and conservation.

We have received a total of six applications to carry out PPP project at the 12 priority sites. In 2008, after deliberation the Advisory Council on the Environment (ACE) supported the Sha Lo Tung PPP project. The project proponent proposed to set up an Ecological Reserve of over 50 hectares at the Sha Lo Tung valley to conserve the biodiversity there. On the other hand, a columbarium and related facilities of about 5 hectares would be set up at the ecologically less sensitive portion of the Sha Lo Tung valley. Since this is a designated project under the Environmental Impact Assessment Ordinance (EIAO), the project proponent submitted the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report on December 30, 2010. Unfortunately, in view of the earlier judicial review relating to the EIAO of the Hong Kong – Zhuhai – Macao Bridge (HKZMB), the project proponent withdrew the report on May 16, 2011. Now that the judicial review on the HKZMB has been concluded, it is understood that the project proponent will resubmit the EIA report to the ACE shortly. The project proponent will also apply to the Town Planning Board on land use matters.

Qingdao's marine projects win national awards
2012-02-22
China Daily

Qingdao was involved in 14 science and technology awards at a high-profile annual ceremony held in Beijing, to honor excellent scientists and research achievements on Feb 14. Qingdao brought home more awards than any other city in Shandong province.

Qingdao's marine projects stood out in all 14 awards. The project for key technologies and applications for the testing of oceanographic instruments and working foundation platforms was awarded the second-grade National Prize for Progress in Science and Technology. The project was led by Dr. Wu Dexing, president of the Ocean University of China (OUC).

The Qingdao-based OUC has won national science and technology awards for six consecutive years.

The world's longest cross-sea bridge, Jiaozhou Bay Bridge that opened last July, was on the list of the second-grade "National Technological Invention Award". This award is related to the technology of underwater concrete boxed cofferdam without bottoms. These not only saved 160 million yuan ($25.44 million) for the project, but also shortened the construction period.

Furthermore, the core part of this advanced technology has been applied in the world's largest "Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge" project, according to a local report.

Haier Group won the first prize for "Enterprise Technological Innovation Project", showing that enterprises in Qingdao have made great breakthroughs in research.

The team led by academician Xie Lixin, who created a new theory and technical application for the deadly infectious keratitis, was honored as another second-grade "National Prize for Progress in Science and Technology" for Qingdao city.

Hopefully!

I hope it applies to Rental cars as well.

So I can get a vehicle from Avis Hong Kong Airport then drop it off at Avis Macau along the way.

I wonder how long is the total drive time (HK<->Macau) :)

From the airport, you'll get there very fast however, from where I live, it could take a while.

New techniques for Delta Bridge
14/03/2012 10:24:00
Macau Daily Times

The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (Delta Bridge) will use a new form of pillar in its construction, to be used for the first time in China. According to Mainland media China News, the technique to be employed is called a “compound steel pipe pillar”, which has the advantages of saving costs while providing extra support to the main body of the construction. The report said it would be the first time this material and skill were employed in China.

The report also quoted Zhuhai municipal sources as saying that successful testing had been conducted on the pillars, paving the way for its practical use in the construction. The bridge stretching three cities will total almost 50 kilometers in length, becoming the longest sea bridge in the world.

Zhuhai Communist Party Secretary Li Jia said last week in Beijing, that he expected the whole project to be finished by 2016. Currently, workers are constructing the reclamation island, where the Macau-Zhuhai section of the bridge will set its foot on. The report says after laying the foundation for the man-made island in April, the construction will enter the most difficult stage, which is the building of a cross-harbor tunnel.

Macau-Guangdong to build new border crossing
07/03/2012 10:26:00
Macau Daily Times

Macau and Guangdong are planning a new border crossing point to channel the growing number of travelers away from the Barrier Gate. Both sides have reached preliminary consensus but the location and completion of the new checkpoint is yet to be finalized.

According to TDM and the Government Information Bureau, the Chief Executive Chui Sai On raised the proposal during his meeting with Guangdong provincial leaders on the sidelines of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing.

Chui said the rapidly growing number of travelers between the two sides had put tremendous pressure on the Barrier Gate (or Gongbei Port on the mainland’s side), which saw 94 million travelers last year to and from Macau and Zhuhai. The number is expected to continue climbing in the coming year and Chui said a new passage is very important to Macau’s economic development as the Barrier Gate is already overburdened.

The two sides reached initial consensus on the need for an additional crossing and agreed to further study the practical arrangements, including location and operational hours. But Tam Chon Weng, head of the Office of the Chief Executive told media that the new crossing point will likely have longer open hours than the Barrier Gate, which operates from 7am - midnight.

Numerous proposals have been raised by social groups and individuals in recent years for alleviating the burden on the Barrier Gate and for better handling the number of travelers from Mainland. They include longer opening hours, and to adopt a single-way immigration checking like that used in the European Union, which required a document check-up by the immigration department of the destination, rather than by both the destination and the place of departure, as currently practiced in the Barrier Gate.

Chui also discussed Hengqin’s development progress with Guangdong officials. Zhuihai mayor Li Jia was quoted as saying that significant results would be seen within this year on various projects in the new zone, including the industrial park for Chinese Medicine, the new Macau University campus and relevant infrastructures. Li also mentioned the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge, saying the three sides were co-operating closely on the cross-border project and he was confident the bridge would be finished by 2016, providing an extra impetus for the economic advancement for the three places and the Pear River Delta region as a whole. The bridge will be connected to the Hengqin development zone by a secondary bridge.

Bai Zhijian, director of the Chinese Liaison Office in Macau was quoted as saying the fact that the Hengqin development project was included in Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s working report showed Beijing’s resolved intention to make use of the new zone to help Macau achieve its diversification of its economic structure, which is currently heavily reliant on gaming industry. He stressed the new zone would provide a precious opportunity for Macau’s development. He is also in Beijing for the CPPCC meeting.

Cost of link road to bridge climbs by $25b
The Standard
Friday, April 20, 2012

The cost of the 12-kilometer link road to the massive Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge has swelled by 50 percent to HK$25 billion.

Sources told Sing Tao Daily, sister newspaper of The Standard, that if the project is delayed further, the costs will increase even more.

The government also confirmed it will re-tender a 3km stretch, which will include constructing ground sections and tunnels, after tenders it received were too high.

The source said bidding prices will be lowered but did not say by how much or the date of the re- tendering exercise.

The HK$83 billion bridge across the Pearl River Delta is being built jointly by Zhuhai, Macau and Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong section will cost at least HK$48.5 billion and includes a 12km link road to the main bridge at the edge of Hong Kong's territorial waters. The original estimate was HK$16.2 billion.

The government will seek the Finance Committee's approval for the additional HK$8.8 billion next Friday, the source said. A paper will also be discussed at the Legislative Council transport panel meeting on Wednesday.

Of the additional billions, HK$3.27 billion was the result of the cost of construction machines and workers' salaries going up due to inflation.

The cost of renting a cargo ship, to transport construction materials to build the artificial island, has gone up 30 percent, the source added.

Another HK$3.44 billion is required to pay for extra staff, technology and equipment needed to make up for lost construction time after a legal challenge stalled the project's progress for nearly a year.

The bridge project is designed to be a major artery for cargo and passengers between the southwestern provinces and Hong Kong.

Following approval by the central government in 2008, construction began in Zhuhai and Macau in 2009.

Hong Kong, however, has lagged seriously due to various challenges by environmentalists.

Work on the main bridge section began only in December, although officials pledged to speed up the project so the whole bridge could open on time.

Construction of the Macau and Zhuhai sections of the main bridge ports started in late 2009, and that forced the Hong Kong authorities to boost manpower, working hours and machinery as well as construction points in an effort to ensure the bridge opens as planned by 2016.

"If additional funds cannot be approved next week and accordingly construction is delayed after June, I would have no confidence that the bridge will be done by 2016," the source added.

港珠澳橋造價增89億
2012年04月21日(六)
http://the-sun.on.cc/img/v2/logo_tsn.png

【本報訊】港珠澳大橋香港段工程一再拖延，令造價飆升。根據政府最新估算，大橋總工程費將增加八十九億元，達至五百七十五億元。當局擬下月將增加撥款的建議呈交立法會工務小組及財委會討論，爭取今年上半年動工，並趕及二○一六年通車。

運輸及房屋局向立法會提交的文件指，需要增加撥款的項目是港珠澳大橋的香港接線，預算工程費由約一百六十二億元，增加五成半至二百五十億元。該接線全長十二公里，連接位於粵港分界線的主橋及擬設於機場島東北面的香港口岸。

該局表示，招標及動工時間均延遲九個月，期間工資、機械及原材料成本價格均上升。

Panel approves extra $8.8b for bridge link road
The Standard
Thursday, April 26, 2012

Lawmakers on the Legislative Council's transport panel yesterday approved a government request for an extra HK$8.8 billion for a road project linked to the Hong Kong- Zhuhai-Macau bridge.

The request will now be passed to the Legco Finance Committee's public works subcommittee for discussion on May 7.

Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng Yu-wah told the panel meeting the government needs the extra funding for the 12-kilometer Hong Kong Link Road as the delay caused by a judicial review against its environmental impact assessment has caused costs to escalate on top of higher-than- expected risk assessment costs.

She said HK$3.27 billion will go to the increase in the cost of construction materials while HK$3.44 billion will go to the risk assessment adjustment.

The increase in provision for price adjustment and for emergencies makes up HK$670 million and HK$1.48 billion respectively.

"The later the construction begins, the higher the construction cost will be," Cheng said. The extra funding will push the total cost of the dual-carriageway, three-lane road to HK$25 billion.

Cheng said the construction costs will continue to soar if the funding is not approved, though she could not put a figure on how much more money will be needed per month of delay. "One thing for sure is the economic loss per year of delay will be 2.2 billion yuan [HK$2.7 billion] for Hong Kong, Macau and Zhuhai," Cheng said.

Should the committee give the go-ahead, construction may begin in the middle of the year and be finished by the end of 2016.

But it could have been completed nine months earlier had the Tung Chung resident Chu Yee-wah, 65, not filed the judicial review.

The Civic Party, which assisted Chu in the review, came under fire at yesterday's meeting for adding HK$8.8 billion to the price tag of the project.

Lawmaker Wong Kwok-kin of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions claimed that if the money had been used instead to stabilize MTR fares, there would be no increases for about 50 years. If used to give free tram rides to the elderly and disabled, they could travel without charge for about 100 years.

Liberal Party chairwoman Miriam Lau Kin-yee also said the HK$8.8 billion could have been put to better use. "The public is shocked at having to pay HK$8.8 billion more," Lau said. "It is not justified that the taxpayers have to pay for this."

But Civic Party legislator Audrey Eu Yuet-mee denied it was the party that filed for the review. Party member Alan Leong Kah-kit, acting as an individual, merely helped file it.