The MTR Corp says planning and design work on its South Island line has found that adding a station at Happy Valley would cause traffic chaos for residents and be much more expensive and time consuming than previously thought.
In the latest document submitted to the Legislative Council's railway subcommittee, the Transport and Housing Bureau said the rail company had identified four possible locations for a station.
The four locations proposed would increase the cost of the HK$9.5 billion project by between HK$1.6 billion and HK$2.8 billion - much higher than the MTR Corp's first estimate of HK$1.3 billion.
It would also extend the construction period by up to 31 months and add an extra 2.5km to the 7km-extension, which will connect South Horizons in Ap Lei Chau to Admiralty.
The four options include a cavern built 70 metres under Fung Tai Terrace, at the Happy Valley tram terminus, a station in the racecourse and one adjacent to the grandstand of the Jockey Club.
This latter option would be the most expensive, as well as adding more than 2.5 minutes to the nine-minute journey between the four stations in Southern district and Admiralty.
