Low bridge traffic deliberate to avoid chaos: govt

Officials had said a minimum of 9,200 vehicles would cross the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge each day, but it has only been half that so far. File photo: AFP

Transport Secretary Frank Chan on Friday responded to concerns that the new bridge to Macau and Zhuhai is barely being used by saying that vehicle numbers are being deliberately kept low to ensure other roads in Hong Kong don't get clogged up.



Since the world's longest cross-sea bridge opened a year ago, an average of 4,100 vehicles per day have crossed over it –half the 9,200 minimum figure estimated back in 2008.



Chan told lawmakers that the government is deliberately controlling the amount of traffic using the 55-kilometre bridge – by issuing a limited number of cross-boundary licences – so that the road link from Lantau to urban areas doesn't become overloaded.



"Currently the main traffic connecting to Lantau goes through the Tsing Ma Bridge and we have to effectively control the traffic. By the end of 2020, the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link Subsea Tunnel will be commissioned and we will be able to handle much more traffic, Chan said.



"It's a very long-term project, so the actual situation after commissioning might be different from originally expected," he added.



The number of permits for Hong Kong private vehicles using the bridge – which cost SAR taxpayers HK$120 billion – is set to increase by 5,000, to 15,000 in April.



However, there are strict criteria for who can apply for a pass, with those who invest in Guangdong, and members of the NPC and CPPCC among those eligible.



On Wednesday, the SAR government announced plans to allow drivers with the required permits to also cross between Macau and Guangdong, in a bid to boost traffic numbers. At the moment, Hong Kong motorists are only allowed to go to either Macau or Zhuhai via the bridge, but not both on the same trip.



Officials noted, however, that only 40 drivers are expected to be able to take advantage of this new arrangement during an initial trial phase.