MTR announced its results for the first half of this year on Thursday (12th). One of the highlights of the press conference was the progress of the sea-crossing section of the Saudi Arabia-Central Line.
What is disappointing is that Chief Executive Officer Jin Zepei has given up on setting targets and only responds to MTR's "chase day by day".
The indefinite completion of the project not only means that the public does not know when they will have alternative options for crossing the sea, but it may also mean that the project cost paid by public funds has not yet reached its peak.
How much does the MTR pay attention to the progress of the project?
Earlier, the MTR reported in public from time to time that the overall progress of the Shaanxi-Central Line cross-sea section was 88.9% as of the end of September last year, and it is now 94.3%.
However, the 90% progress statement contains "devil details." Like the Legislative Council document, several projects are clearly behind, including the second phase of new trains, additional gates, building services and the most critical signal system. The progress was only more than 70% at the end of March this year.
The signal system problem refers to the fact that the train will be "taken the wrong way" when traveling on the branch, that is, it will mistakenly follow the previous train and enter the wrong station, and there will be "false red lights" during the test run.
Therefore, even if other projects are completed, the signal system is not secure for a day, and the new line cannot be opened to traffic.
Jin Zepei said that he has fully advanced the sea-crossing project on the Shazhong line, and important projects such as the Convention and Exhibition Station and Admiralty Station have made some progress.
(Photo by Li Zetong)
Don't know when to open to traffic, project management dereliction of duty
In fact, prior to this, there have been continuous wall construction errors and excessive settlements in the exhibition station. Hung Hom Station has also been exposed to construction defects such as steel bar cutting and missing inspection forms. Quality confidence.
At the beginning of the year, Jin Zepei said that the goal of opening to traffic in the first quarter of next year was "more severe than before." Now he even described the signal system and the delay in the service of new trains as delaying the entire project. Timetable is all grasped.
The MTR has the responsibility to keep up with the progress of the project, but as the project manager, the MTR must also manage and control the cost of the project.
Because the Shazhong line adopts the construction and operation model of "service management rights", the entire Shazhong line project is funded by public funds. MTR should be more cautious in using it and instruct contractors to account for the progress of the project, and then promptly report to the government and the public the expected completion date. Let the government "pay the bill" to calculate how much public money is spent.
The exhibition station was also revealed that the contractor had failed to construct according to the plan. Before installing the temporary support frame on the last floor, the excavation work exceeded the allowable depth.
In addition, the contractor mistakenly turned the front and back of the cage of the wall.
(Data Picture/Photographed by Lin Ruoqin)
However, MTR has underestimated its responsibility for prudent financial management. Instead, it has been using the service management mechanism to solicit public money, as if it regarded the government as a cash machine. For example, it recently obtained additional funding from the Legislative Council to increase the project budget to 90.8 billion yuan. .
Based on the MTR’s latest estimate of project cost of about 83 billion yuan, MTR should still have funds to "go away", which can reduce the worry of lack of money due to its indefinite completion of the project, even if it is not sure about the opening date.
Strengthening government supervision can stop chaos
As for the supervision of the MTR’s Transport and Housing Bureau, it is also negligent if it does not require the MTR to "cap" the project expenditures.
Although the government has decided to return to the "ownership" model when entrusting the MTR to build new railway lines in the future, the system will no longer be the "underwriting" of the project. In the future, it can be said that there will be an extra layer of protection for public funds, but if the MTR and the contractor continue If you are sloppy and ignore the quality and deadlines of the project, I am afraid that future projects will be the same.
A few days ago, the central government has successively supervised financial institutions, food delivery platforms, and off-campus educational institutions. All actions are aimed at protecting the interests of the people and will not be softened just because the opponents are giant companies.
MTR dominates the lifeline of mass transportation in Hong Kong, so strong supervision is even more necessary. To avoid the recurrence of the aforementioned chaos, it is natural to strictly supervise railway planning, construction and regulation, and to speed up the implementation of the railway department’s early implementation and operation for Hong Kong. People check and make MTR follow the rules.
You can’t live and work in peace and contentment. The Hung Shui Bridge Station of the First Railway and the First Bureau is expected to take six years to complete.