Hong Kong-Macau-Zhuhai Mega-Bridge Project

[laduchessa]

Mmmm Interesting this project...

[General Huo]

[hkskyline]

Deadly drop
The Standard
Friday, October 26, 2012





A construction worker was killed and 14 others injured, three seriously, when a suspended platform fell two to three meters at the site of an artificial island being built off Chek Lap Kok for the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau mega bridge.

Accounts differ over the incident, with a government official saying the workers were resting at the time of the tragedy while an industrial accidents activist said they were working.

The tragedy was not related to the compressed work schedule to meet the timetable for opening of the bridge in 2016, the government said.

Highways Department director Lau Ka-keung said the workers were resting on a suspended platform inside a huge upright metal tube when the platform gave way.

Some were hit by metal objects and construction material and sustained severe injuries.

The steel drums at the site are to be sunk to the seabed, seawater drained out and then filled with concrete to form the island's foundations.

A fleet of fire engines and ambulances was dispatched to Lantau where the injured were brought to shore. The 15 workers were first ferried to a pier at Tung Chung to be sent to different hospitals.Two were unconscious when rescued.

Tam Chung-pong, 58, was later declared dead at Princess Margaret Hospital, while another worker, Lam Yuet-piu, 35, was in a coma and remains in a severe condition in the same hospital.

Another two workers were in a severe condition in Princess Margaret Hospital and Queen Elizabeth Hospital last night. Two more were stable in Yan Chai Hospital. The others were discharged.

Marine police and firefighters searched the site, but found no one else, according to the Fire Services Department.

Work at the site will remain suspended until inspectors are satisfied it is safe. The Labour Department is investigating the cause of the tragedy.

Chan Kam-hong, president of the Association for the Rights of Industrial Accident Victims, said the victims were working at the time of the accident. He said they were raising the temporary platform but it gave way at about 10.30am.

Chan said the platform plunged three meters after one bit of lifting gear broke and the remaining equipment broke one after another.

The project's main contractor, China Harbour Engineering Company, said it is still looking into the cause of the accident. The contractor gave HK$100,000 to Tam's family as immediate help.

Lau said his department already required contractors to deploy more workers and equipment for the project in a bid to meet the tight completion time.

"Even so, we will not ignore the safety measures at the work site," Lau said. "The implementation of safety initiatives by workers at the site is of top priority."

The artificial island site is designed to cover 130 hectares and will provide land for the development of boundary crossing facilities of the new bridge.

Among things to be built on the land area are cargo clearance facilities including kiosks and inspection platforms for goods vehicles, X-ray buildings and passenger clearance facilities.

Accommodation and other facilities for frontline departments such as Immigration Department will also the built there.

The project started last November and is expected to be completed in 2016. CHEC is the main contractor of the project and the resident engineer is Ove Arup & Partners Hong Kong.

[shree711]

Damn people dying for the bridge...

[hkskyline]

12 May 2012
Source : http://www.airliners.net/aviation-fo...d.main/226056/

[hkskyline]

Oct. 2012
Source : http://pic.feeyo.com/posts/578/5782454.html

[hkskyline]

LCQ18: Competitiveness of Hong Kong's travel and tourism industry
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Government Press Release Excerpt

Following is a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Gregory So, to a question by the Hon Abraham Shek in the Legislative Council today (February 6):

Question:

According to the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2011, Hong Kong had an overall ranking of 12 among 139 countries and places in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index in 2011, which is two places behind Singapore. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) given that Hong Kong ranked 112th in the area of "presence of major car rental companies", whether the Government has assessed the current demand of tourists for car rental services and the expected demand upon the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge; if it has not, of the reasons for that; if it has, the details of the assessment outcome, and if the assessment outcome shows an unmet demand for car rental services now or in future, whether the Government will consider introducing measures to boost the supply of such services; if it will not, of the reasons for that;

Reply:

President,

My reply to various parts of the question is as follows :

(a) As a compact city, Hong Kong is famous for its safe, affordable and efficient public transport system, which offers convenient means of getting around the city. The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) widely publicises the different transportation facilities and services in Hong Kong through various channels to help visitors get around and explore the city.

The HKTB regularly monitors visitors' feedback on the adequacy of tourism and related facilities in the city. So far, the HKTB has not received any feedback or complaints about insufficient car rental service in Hong Kong. Presently, only vehicles with cross-boundary quotas are allowed to use land crossings to travel between Hong Kong and the Guangdong Province. These do not include rental cars. The completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) will likely bring in more tourists to Hong Kong, and the Government is considering cross-boundary transport arrangements for the HZMB. So far, provision has not been made for rental cars to use the new crossing. Upon the commissioning of the HZMB, the Government will closely monitor the situation, in particular whether it would bring about a corresponding increase in demand for car rental service by tourists.

[FM 2258]

Originally Posted by Ervin2

Hong Kong and Macau are both highly reliant on buses, and there isn't nearly enough demand for rail between the two anyway. Also rail transport would take up a ton of space for the tracks and stations and so on in a place that's very limited in space, especially in Macau. Meanwhile buses are very versatile with destinations. It takes a massive amount of demand to justify a rail service.

Either way I'm still surprised there is no provision for rail to prepare for future connection needs. Will this bridge bring an end to TurboJet ferry service?

[hkskyline]

Originally Posted by FM 2258

Either way I'm still surprised there is no provision for rail to prepare for future connection needs. Will this bridge bring an end to TurboJet ferry service?

They did consider rail initially but dropped the plan.

Since the casino companies own the ferries, I doubt they'll disappear once the bridge opens. I believe some casinos offer free ferry rides to their big customers already.

[FM 2258]

Hopefully it's not too late for the government to change their mind on rail. As for the ferries I'm glad those will be around. The TurboJet ferry from Hong Kong to Macau was a lot of fun.

[hkskyline]

Grand designs: Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge

BEIJING, May 2 (Xinhuanet) -- When it’s finished, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao crossing will be China’s longest mileage, largest investment, and most complex cross-sea channel. It will connect Hong Kong on the east bank of the Pearl River Delta to Zhuhai and Macao on the west bank. The subsea tunnel is one of the most complex parts of the construction.

The bridge starts from San Shek Wan in Hong Kong, and crosses the Pearl estuary to Zhuhai and Macao, in a "single Y-shape". The designers say the construction will take into account the future development of the three cities.

But it’s a project that’s highly complex. The Y-shaped cross-sea bridge can’t be built as a single entity.

Liu Xiaodong, Design Leader, Island Tunnel Project; HK, Zhuhai, Macao Crossing, said, "This bridge needs to pass through several important channels, including the Lingding and Tonggu Channels. But if we build bridges in these areas, they would have to be immense, with a large span and high towers. The high towers could impact on airline routes."

The original plan was to continue the bridge across the Lingdingyang waters, an international shipping waterway.

This would have meant the bridge being constructed at a height of at least 80 meters, to allow big ships to pass. That means having bridge towers of at least 200 meters.

But the proximity of the nearby Hong Kong airport requires all constructions to be limited to just 88 meters.

Liu Xiaodong, Design Leader, Island Tunnel Project; HK, Zhuhai, Macao Crossing, said, "On the one hand, we need a large span bridge to let big ships pass. On the other hand we are restricted by the airport. So we have to build a tunnel instead."

There’ll now be a 36-kilometer tunnel, connected via two artificial islands.

Liu Xiaodong also said, "This bridge-island-tunnel scheme is the optimal decision to successfully coordinate all passage ways for air, land and sea."

Construction on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao crossing began on December 15th, 2009. Completion is scheduled for 2016.

Once built, the crossing will be the world’s longest six-lane immersed tunnel and longest combined cross-sea bridge-tunnel.

(Source: CNTV.cn)

[hmmwv]

Originally Posted by FM 2258

Hopefully it's not too late for the government to change their mind on rail. As for the ferries I'm glad those will be around. The TurboJet ferry from Hong Kong to Macau was a lot of fun.

I just don't think Hongkong and Macau will generate enough traffic to warrant a rail link. Between Zhuhai and Hongkong passengers can use the future HSR through Shenzhen.

[Tiger Beer]

Originally Posted by hkskyline

Grand designs: Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge

BEIJING, May 2 (Xinhuanet) -- When it’s finished, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao crossing will be China’s longest mileage, largest investment, and most complex cross-sea channel. It will connect Hong Kong on the east bank of the Pearl River Delta to Zhuhai and Macao on the west bank. The subsea tunnel is one of the most complex parts of the construction.

The bridge starts from San Shek Wan in Hong Kong, and crosses the Pearl estuary to Zhuhai and Macao, in a "single Y-shape". The designers say the construction will take into account the future development of the three cities.

But it’s a project that’s highly complex. The Y-shaped cross-sea bridge can’t be built as a single entity.

Liu Xiaodong, Design Leader, Island Tunnel Project; HK, Zhuhai, Macao Crossing, said, "This bridge needs to pass through several important channels, including the Lingding and Tonggu Channels. But if we build bridges in these areas, they would have to be immense, with a large span and high towers. The high towers could impact on airline routes."

The original plan was to continue the bridge across the Lingdingyang waters, an international shipping waterway.

This would have meant the bridge being constructed at a height of at least 80 meters, to allow big ships to pass. That means having bridge towers of at least 200 meters.

But the proximity of the nearby Hong Kong airport requires all constructions to be limited to just 88 meters.

Liu Xiaodong, Design Leader, Island Tunnel Project; HK, Zhuhai, Macao Crossing, said, "On the one hand, we need a large span bridge to let big ships pass. On the other hand we are restricted by the airport. So we have to build a tunnel instead."

There’ll now be a 36-kilometer tunnel, connected via two artificial islands.

Liu Xiaodong also said, "This bridge-island-tunnel scheme is the optimal decision to successfully coordinate all passage ways for air, land and sea."

Construction on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao crossing began on December 15th, 2009. Completion is scheduled for 2016.

Once built, the crossing will be the world’s longest six-lane immersed tunnel and longest combined cross-sea bridge-tunnel.

(Source: CNTV.cn)

Tunnels? I don't know, going in tunnels for 36 kilometers would be scarey. Any accident in there, and that could take a very long time to clear up! Plus, not the best views either.

[ChrisZwolle]

I think it's a bridge-tunnel link, similar to the CBBT in Virginia.