An old file photo of Hopewell Holdings' Guangzhou-Shenzhen Superhighway shows two cyclists pedalling down the middle of the expressway, each with one hand on the handlebars and the other holding a parasol.
That lazy scene encapsulated many a cynic's suspicion that Hopewell's then nascent Pearl River Delta roads portfolio was little more than a collection of glorified bike paths.
In the mid-1990s, Hopewell's delta road projects were indeed characterised by poor returns. But after almost a decade of double-digit traffic and revenue growth, the company's four delta toll roads linking Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Shunde - one more is under construction - have emerged as the real jewels in Hopewell's crown, outshining its property, hotel and construction interests.
This turnaround is best illustrated by two simple statistics. In the financial year to June 2002, Hopewell's infrastructure project investments - led by its delta roads - accounted for just 20 per cent of turnover but more than 70 per cent of earnings before interest and tax.
The contribution was even more pronounced in the first six months of this financial year, thanks in particular to the 123-kilometre Guangzhou-Shenzhen superhighway, which saw revenues grow more than 8 per cent to almost two billion yuan (about HK$1.88 billion) on the back of a 22 per cent rise in traffic volume.
The results have validated Hopewell chairman Sir Gordon Wu Ying-sheung's original conviction that road investments in one of China's - and the world's - most dynamic and fastest growing regions were a no-brainer.