The Executive Council (ExCo) yesterday gave the green light to two railway projects under planning - the Sha Tin to Central Link (SCL) and the Kwun Tong Line Extension.

When completed, they are expected to alleviate traffic pressure on urban Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.

The construction cost of the SCL and the Kwun Tong Line Extension is HK$37.4 billion and HK$4.2 billion respectively. The government will entirely fund the planning of the SCL and grant a service concession to the Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC).

The SCL is one of the priority rail projects recommended in the Railway Development Strategy 2000.

The 17-kilometer SCL will comprise nine stations, linking up Tai Wai and Admiralty through intermediate stations Diamond Hill, Kai Tak, To Kwa Wan, Ma Tau Wai, Homantin, Hung Hom and Exhibition.

The train depot will be built at Diamond Hill.

The SCL will be completed in phases, with the 11-km Tai Wai to Hung Hom section to be completed by 2015 and the 6-km cross-harbor section by 2019.

The SCL would create two railway corridors linking east to west and north to south.

Passengers can travel directly from Ma On Shan to Tuen Mun in only 69 minutes, and from Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau to Central in 52 minutes, said Secretary for Transport and Housing Eva Cheng.

Commuters can save up to 12 minutes traveling from Tai Wai to Central.

Tai Wai, Diamond Hill, Homantin, Hung Hom, Exhibition and Admiralty stations will provide either an inter-platform or inter-level interchange for other lines.

"Tai Wai and Admiralty are the two key interchange stations," Cheng added.

The SCL would serve a residential population of 300,000 and working population of 280,000.

"It is estimated that the SCL will carry about one million passengers daily in 2021," she said. The annual economic benefit in terms of travel time saving is approximately HK$4 billion.

The government will grant the MTRC a service concession for operation and expects to receive HK$91.8 billion for the concession in 50 years.

"The new railway will create 11,000 jobs during construction and another 9,600 during its operation," she added.

Cheng said that it was beneficial for the government to keep the ownership and receive income from the service concession.

Chief executive officer of the MTRC Chow Chung-Kong said the company will not be granted property development rights in the planning of the SCL.

What is most important is to ensure that the financial arrangement would bring reasonable return, he said.

The fare of the SCL will accord to the current system formulated when the MTRC and the former Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation merged, Cheng said.

She also explained that it is technically unsafe to build a station at Tsz Wan Shan and the government will review the minibus services to improve transport connection with the SCL.

The MTRC will extend the Kwun Tong Line from Yau Ma Tei Station to Whampoa through an intermediate station at Ho Man Tin, serving 140,000 residents along and an estimate daily patronage of 180,000 in 2016, one year after its completion.

Ho Man Tin Station will be an integrated interchange station to allow passengers to change to other stations.

Passengers will reach Mongkok from Whampoa in five minutes, compared to 25 minutes at present.

The Kwun Tong Line Extension will be implemented as an MTR project under an ownership approach and the government would discuss with the MTRC the bridging of a HK$2.2 billion funding gap.

Chow said the Kwun Tong Line was owned by the MTRC and could cover the investment cost by its property.

(HK Edition 03/12/2008 page1)