The Tai Lam Tunnel toll rise was yesterday blamed on the failure of officials to accurately predict the number of vehicles using it.
Tolls for the tunnel will go up for all users tomorrow. The operator, Route 3 (CPS), said accumulated losses over the past few years had reached $600 million by the end of January.
In a Legco transport panel meeting, legislators said the Government should have provided a more accurate prediction of usage and that the rises would harm Hong Kong's economy.
Since the tunnel opened in May 1998, the average daily vehicle flow has been 45,000, about 40 per cent short of the 73,000 target predicted by the Government. The figures were used to establish expected profits.
According to the company's contract with the Government, fares can be raised whenever profits fall below the established level.
Selina Chow Liang Shuk-yee, of the Liberal Party, said the Government should review this practice, while Tam Yiu-chung, of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong, said the Government had overestimated traffic flow.
