Benjamin Siu, 16 St Joseph's College A city is only as good as its infrastructure. Over the past decade, economic development in Hong Kong has outpaced urban development. Vital routes are congested. Gloucester Road, for example, is the main artery for Hong Kong-Kowloon traffic, but it suffers from chronic congestion. To solve this problem, and many others, the government plans to extend existing transport solutions with a new flyover. This way, road users will have a second choice when travelling from Island East to West, and when traversing Victoria Harbour. The government believes this feat of bypass surgery will be an effective, long-term solution to end our traffic problems. However, many of us think otherwise. The project involves reclaiming land from Victoria Harbour and pulling down the Star Ferry Pier and Queen's Pier. A part of us will disappear with the phasing out of Star Ferry Pier and Queen's Pier. But we must love convenience and efficiency as much as we love our heritage. We don't want to lose our harbour, but neither do we want an increasingly obsolete urban layout. Hong Kong has grown out of her shell and she needs a new one. The city has only a little over 1,000 square kilometres available for use, and some of it has to yield to urban development, if Hong Kong is to retain its status as an Asian finance centre. 'No history, no future', says one of the slogans stuck on what remains of Star Ferry Pier. But without urban development, we would be history by now. Jocelyn Heng, 15 Maryknoll Convent School Urban development is essential for economic progress. However, this is no excuse for playing down the significance of cultural relics or historical icons. The thing about urban development is that plans never go according to the initial blueprint; doubt and uncertainty are always present. Take the West Kowloon Cultural Hub, for example. After years of painstaking planning, the government has dropped its original ideas and is starting over from scratch. One can only be thankful there were no historical monuments in the vicinity to be sacrificed. Cultural heritage has always been an integral part of Hong Kong's identity. Many people seek solace in the familiar everyday sights they encounter, and such monuments define who we are. Queen's Pier is more than just a ferry terminal. For many of us, it signifies the 'good old days', when Hong Kong was a peaceful simple settlement and not the fast-paced metropolis it is now. These precious memories remind Hong Kong people of their cultural roots. If we give in to the demands of insatiable land developers, the destructive process will continue. Queen's Pier is set to be removed, and next is the Ritz-Carlton, which will be pulled down to make way for office buildings. What will be left of our heritage and collective memories 10 years from now? The key is to strike a balance between sustainable development and cultural heritage protection.