Letters | Ease Hong Kong traffic before allowing mainland cars to enter via mega bridge

Readers discuss an obstacle to easing travel within the Greater Bay Area, a missed business opportunity over Halloween, and feral pigs becoming a nuisance in Sai Kung

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An aerial view of the traffic congestion along Gloucester Road on Hong Kong Island in January 2019. Attempts over the years to introduce a congestion charge to alleviate traffic jams have so far failed. Photo: Winson Wong

Published: 11:30am, 12 Nov 2023

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Secretary for Transport and Logistics Lam Sai-hung is quite right to state that caution is needed before discussing a quota for private cars entering the territory from Guangdong and Macau across the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge (“Hong Kong’s transport chief raises concerns over southbound travel plan”, November 6)

Our narrow downtown streets are already saturated with indiscriminately parked vehicles, including private cars bearing dual Hong Kong and mainland registration plates. Traffic flow in our central business districts is slow-moving and close to complete gridlock for many hours of each working day, and this is made worse by the nearside lanes being obstructed by parked or waiting vehicles.

The economic cost of the hindrances to commerce in Hong Kong because goods vehicles and public transport vehicles are unable to move freely along our streets is enormous.

Furthermore, those in private vehicles flouting parking rules, even if caught and penalised with a ticket, are charged a non-deterrent pittance (HK$320 or US$41) compared with the newly introduced fines of HK$3,000 for those who litter and HK$6,000 for those who cause obstruction.

Meanwhile, each month an additional 3,000 plus new cars are registered for use in Hong Kong. How are all these additional vehicles going to fit onto our already congested streets?