A CALL has been made for an overhaul of typhoon warnings to give employers, workers and public transport more flexibility to cope with the disruption caused by the No 8 signal, which yesterday lost the territory an estimated $1.2 billion.
Those living close to work should be allowed to go in if a safe and direct route was available, said Institute of Personnel Management council member Patrick Maule.
A system of detailed warnings should be introduced which would let companies decide which workers should leave first, such as those living further away, he said.
'I think there's an opportunity for a little more productivity by making it more situational,' said Mr Maule, the human resources director of the Mass Transit Railway Corporation.
'If Hong Kong sets its mind to it, it could come up with a formula.' He said the warning system, which was fine in principle but needed more work on detail, dated back to the times when there were greater hazards in Hong Kong.
MTR deputy operations director Roger Kynaston said the No 8 signal had been previously used to provide a warning for people using ferries to get home.
