The government is insisting on building a Y-shaped bridge linking Hong Kong, Macau and the rest of the west bank of the Pearl River Delta, while Shenzhen is likely to be bypassed in the final route design.
Yesterday, Mr Tung seemed to have ruled out the possibility of providing an additional link to Shekou in Shenzhen, proposed in a study commissioned by the 2022 Foundation.
Although he did not outline details of the route, he said: 'A bridge linking Hong Kong to Macau and the western part of the Pearl River Delta will be of strategic importance to the development of the whole region.'
Mr Tung said the central government had instructed the State Development Planning Commission to carry out a detailed feasibility study.
The government has said privately that an additional link to Shekou would be too long and unnecessary because the Western Corridor linking Shekou and Yuen Long will open in 2005.
Mr Tung believed that the bridge would be built soon through the joint efforts of Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau.