Controversial proposal to revamp cross-harbour tunnel tolls in Hong Kong likely to be shelved before reaching legislature
- Government plans to withdraw a non-binding motion if it fails to secure the support of more than half of lawmakers by Tuesday afternoon, source says
- If the motion is withdrawn, government will not retable it again until it takes back ownership of Western Harbour Tunnel in 2023
A controversial proposal to revamp cross-harbour tunnel tolls is likely to be shelved even before it arrives in the legislature for discussion.
The government planned to withdraw a non-binding motion on the plan, which was expected to be tabled to the Legislative Council on Wednesday, if it failed to secure the support of more than half of lawmakers by Tuesday afternoon, a source familiar with the administration’s position said.
“If the motion is withdrawn this time, the government will not retable it again until it takes back ownership of the Western Harbour Tunnel in 2023,” the source said on Monday.
Luk Chung-hung, a lawmaker from the pro-government Federation of Trade Unions, said he was not surprised by the government’s move to withdraw the motion and defer the scheme.
“We proposed to the Transport and Housing Bureau on Monday that the motion should be withdrawn. We know officials have been pondering the possibility in recent days,” Luk said.
The plan proposes raising tolls at the publicly operated Cross-Harbour Tunnel and Eastern Harbour Tunnel, while lowering them for the privately run Western Harbour Tunnel, which is underused because of its higher charges.