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SCMP Reporter

A TUNNEL extension from Quarry Bay could be completed in 1999 in an attempt to ease the congestion at the interchange, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation said yesterday.

Tin Hau, Fortress Hill, or North Point could be the station linking up with Quarry Bay pending a feasibility study, but Fortress Hill seems to be the favoured option. Previously only Tin Hau was considered.

Upon completion of the $2 billion tunnel, passengers from the Kwun Tong line heading for Central will be able to get off at the new interchange - likely to be cross-platform - avoiding the current five-minute walk to change trains at Quarry Bay.

But those travelling to Chai Wan will still have to change at Quarry Bay.

The plan is in response to increasing congestion at Quarry Bay as passengers change between Kwun Tong and Island lines.

Around 30,000 passengers an hour pass through that interchange during the morning peak, two-thirds of them going to Central. Estimated growth is three per cent a year.

The station's capacity is 36,000 an hour.

The extension is also aimed at diverting part of the flow when the Tseung Kwan O line is completed in 2001.

A nine-kilometre line will run from Lam Tin to Po Lam, including stations at Yau Tong, Tiu Keng Leng (Rennie's Mill), Tseung Kwan O, Hang Hau and Po Lam.

According to the Planning Department, Tseung Kwan O will have a population of up to 445,000. A final report detailing the actual alignment of Tseung Kwan O line will be handed over to the Government in February.

The new tunnel link will be finalised in January, said MTRC's project director Russell Black.

Construction is scheduled to be completed in late 1999 or early 2000.

Mr Black said Fortress Hill and North Point stations were later added to the line-up because it was not feasible to build a cross-platform link at Tin Hau. 'The Tin Hau interchange would not be very convenient considering the time passengers walk from one platform to another,' he said.

 At present the Quarry Bay tunnel ends at the intersection of Tin Hau Temple Road and Braemar Hill, which makes it more suitable for the extension to link up with Fortress Hill.

'The alteration to Fortress Hill's existing platforms will be more expensive but we can end up with a very convenient interchange,' said Mr Black.

At North Point the tunnel end is almost at right angles to the existing line, causing a headache for planners.

A clerk working in Central, Lau Ka-chung, praised the plan last night while going home to Kwun Tong.

'It takes four minutes to cross the harbour and it takes another eight minutes to walk up to another platform during the morning rush hours.

'It will be much easier if we only need to walk to the opposite platform and catch the train,' he said.

Extra escalators would be built at Quarry Bay to speed up the passenger flow, said Mr Black.

  About 1,000 early-morning commuters were held up yesterday when a regular MTR maintenance check discovered a cracked rail on the Tsim Sha Tsui to Admiralty line at 6 am.

Trains from Tsim Sha Tsui to Central were suspended for 20 minutes while maintenance engineers fixed the crack, causing about 1,000 passengers to build up on the Kowloon side, an MTR spokesman said.

The Central to Tsim Sha Tsui line was not affected.



Bid to cut crowds at Quarry Bay