Defective construction work at Hung Hom station tunnel ‘was subcontractor’s fault, not ours’, says main contractor at MTR commission of inquiry
- Leighton Contractors (Asia) rejected allegations it was responsible for shoddy work, saying bar-fixing subcontractor failed to connect rebar
- The MTR Corporation, however, accused Leighton of failing to submit documents on time and of neglecting to highlight problems where appropriate
The main contractor at the scandal-plagued Hung Hom MTR station has hit back at allegations it engineered defective construction work at the station tunnel, saying it was caused by a subcontractor’s failure to do its job correctly.
Leighton Contractors (Asia) made the counter-attack at an extended government-appointed commission of inquiry on Tuesday.
The extended commission is looking into issues reported at three more locations of the station on the HK$97.1 billion (US$12.3 billion) Sha Tin-Central link.
The issues concern shoddy construction on the north approach tunnel’s stitch joints, missing documents known as RISC forms and the unauthorised change of design at the north and south approach tunnels and the Hung Hom station’s side tracks.
The new reports followed last year’s allegations of defective work on the station’s platforms and walls. The commission concluded in March that those structures were safe despite the shortcomings in the work.
Bar-fixing subcontractor Wing & Kwong Steel Engineering has accused Leighton of being responsible for the defective work at the north approach tunnel, which was found to have a number of unconnected rebar. Leighton was the main contractor on the job.