Diversion of the Three Tunnels｜The Hong Kong Government's plan to deliver at the end of the year plans to cross the sea during busy times and cost 5 to 20 yuan. The three tunnels are not uniform

In 2018, the government proposed to divert the three tunnels and increase the tolls of the CHT and EHT.

The Hong Kong government is currently exchanging views with individual Legislative Council members on the direction of the three-tunnel diversion policy.

DAB Legislative Council member Chen Heng-pin said that the government had earlier investigated how different toll rates would affect the habits of drivers, such as the different effects of the CHT fare increase of $5, $10, and $20.

He continued that the plan combines the concept of "congestion levy" and will implement different time rates for different time periods, and the tolls for the three tunnels will not be uniform, but there is no special attitude from the government for the time being.

The Transport Department said that it will consult the Transport Panel and the public on specific plans at the end of this year, and then submit legislative amendments to the Legislative Council for implementation.

Chen Heng-pin said that the government had consulted councillors on the plan earlier, and the authorities planned to combine the three-tunnel diversion plan with the concept of "congestion levy" to propose a "different time period, different toll" plan.

He continued to point out that at the meeting, the government announced the results of the traffic data forecasting model, such as the impact of the CHT fare increases of $5, $10 and $20.

He said that the more the fare increase, the greater the impact, but the CHT is still congested, and the utilization rate may drop from 140% to 120%.

Chen Hengpin: The government has not decided yet

He said that the government has not yet finalized the decision and is still discussing, but each tunnel will have different tolls at different times to relieve congestion.

He also believes that traffic jams in the CHT is a "deadly disease". No matter how the fare increase, it will always be jammed, and the increase of 20 yuan is too expensive.

He worries that if the CHT increases too much, it may cause congestion in the WHT, which will outweigh the gains.

He suggested that during non-peak hours, the WHT could charge a lower price to dredge the CHT; during peak hours, the charge should be higher, but it should be cheaper than the current one.

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It is more expensive to cross the sea during the peak hours from 7 to 10 in the morning and from 5 to 8 in the evening

Another media quoted news that the government plans to set the peak hours for the congestion levy to be set at 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

According to an estimate by the authorities, if the cross-harbour tunnel toll is increased by 20 yuan during peak hours, about 20% of adults will transfer to public transportation or use other tunnels; if it is increased by 30 yuan, the relevant proportion may rise to about 40%.

Another source said that although the Hong Kong government intends to maintain the toll gap between the WHC and the CHT and EHC, it understands that the public has valuable opinions on the WHC toll, and the research direction also includes a slight reduction in the WHC toll.

Auto Club: Different fees at different times are unfair to commuters

Li Yaopei, president of the Automobile Association, said that different charges at different times are unfair to office workers. He questioned that the charges are punitive. Tunnels, it is recommended that all cross-harbour tunnels should be charged uniformly.

He also said that if the congestion cannot be resolved, consideration should be given to building a new trunk crossing.

Transport Department: Consult the Legislative Council and the public on specific plans by the end of this year

The Transport Department replied that with the resumption of the franchise of the West Tunnel and the implementation of non-stop toll payment services in government tunnels, the government can take into account the tolls of various cross-harbour tunnels according to the cross-harbour traffic conditions, and implement different tolls at different time periods, according to the congestion at different time periods. In case of congestion, different tolls are charged, so that drivers can adjust their travel habits according to different toll levels, so as to curb and disperse the demand for cross-harbour traffic during peak hours.

The Transport Department continued that it is listening to stakeholders' views on the implementation of different tolls at different time periods, and will formulate specific plans with reference to stakeholders' opinions and data on travel habits. The legislative amendments were then submitted to the Legislative Council for implementation.

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