TRAFFIC police were on standby last night in case the Man Kam To road bridge had to be closed because of rising flood water from the Shenzhen River.
A closure could cause massive traffic congestion from the border all the way down to the Kwai Chung container port.
''The problem with the New Territories is that there is a lack of areas where trucks can stay,'' said Traffic New Territories North senior staff officer, Senior Superintendent David Pitt.
''While it might look as if there is a lot of space there is actually very little land available.'' Mr Pitt said he hoped border traffic would be reduced at the weekend to alleviate congestion.
Elsewhere in the territory, the bad weather brought traffic chaos, with many roads being closed off.
Thirteen stretches of road were shut, the main problems being in Castle Peak Road near Lai Chi Kok, Sai Sha Road between Sai Kung and Tai Mo Shan, Lung Cheung Road across northern Kowloon, and Pokfulam Road and Magazine Gap Road on Hong Kong Island.