I refer to the letter from Markus Shaw headlined, 'Set up central body' (South China Morning Post, July 16), concerning the traffic congestion along South District, on Hong Kong Island.
The control and co-ordination of roadworks is one of the main tasks of the Transport and Highways departments and the police. We have different kinds of measures which we use to control and co-ordinate roadworks, in order to minimise disruption to the public.
For example, some works have to start and finish within non-peak hours, between 10am and 4pm. No roadworks are allowed in some defined busy roads during the day. And roadworks agencies have to submit traffic impact assessments, with details of temporary traffic diversion schemes, before starting work on some busy roads. The Highways Department is now using a computerised utility management system to control and co-ordinate planned roadworks. These measures help us minimise disruption.
More roadworks are required for various improvement works, such as the laying of telecommunication cables and drainage improvement and slope works. We try to co-ordinate roadworks, again, to minimise disruption. The roadworks in the South District along Tai Tam Road and Repulse Bay Road, are mainly Geotechnical Engineering Office (GEO) slope improvement works. The Highways Department will liaise with the GEO to try and expedite the works.
W. H. LUK Senior Engineer/Highways Complaints Highways Department