KMB fair promotes safety idea

THE ''Bus Wonderland for Charity'' fair at Victoria Park during the Easter holidays attracted thousands of visitors over the five-day event.

Aimed at raising funds for the Community Chest and reinforcing the principle of road safety, the event was jointly organised by Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB) and the Community Chest.

The carnival-like function was one of the many programmes organised to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the bus company.

Staff of Radio Television Hongkong Radio 2's Morning Suite show also joined in the festivity.

Hundreds of visitors young and old attended the colourful opening ceremony.

After a splendid lion dance, KMB deputy general manager John Choy Chung-yuen and Community Chest Fund Raising Committee chairman Lawrence Yu Kam-kee officiated the opening ceremony.

Mr Choy said the bus company had clearly demonstrated its determination to care for the community through the organisation of such a charity programme.

''We have converted some old buses for educational and social use, such as the Smart Bus, Music Bus and Studio Bus, in order to make KMB more than just a transport service,'' Mr Choy said.

Such conversions reflected the company's ability to cope with the changing times and passenger demands and its willingness to be geared towards meeting the social need, he said.

Many young children and teenagers packed in front of the stage where their idols - the Grasshopper, Hacken Lee, Sandra Ng, Maple Hui and Lai Chi - later performed.

Although it was the first time for Sandra Ng and Lai Chi to sing before such a large crowd, their performance won thunderous applause.

The Grasshopper and Hacken Lee attracted the most attention; their many young fans seemed impressed by their idols' performance.

The fair also featured the first Hongkong single-decker and double-decker buses as well as a parade of classic buses.

For pop fans of the '70s, a bus museum tracing the development of the Wynners certainly brought back memories. A three-metre high ''bus cake'' and a double-decker decorated with over 20,000 balloons were the other big attractions.