Eastern Harbour Crossing
Encyclopedia
The Eastern Harbour Crossing, abbreviated as "EHC" (東隧), is a tunnel in Hong Kong
. It is a combined road and MTR
rail link under Victoria Harbour
between Quarry Bay
in Hong Kong Island
and Cha Kwo Ling
in Kowloon
.
(BOT) model in planning new tunnels in different parts of the city.
In 1986, the government gave New Hong Kong Tunnel the right to run the Tunnel on a 30-year franchise with lease expiring in August 2016. The tunnel features two components, a road part and a rail part:
The powerful Chinese investment group CITIC Pacific
is interested in both parts, controlling the road part (71% stake) and has a 50% stake in the rail part. CITIC also controls 50% of the Western Harbour Tunnel Company
.
There are many cross-harbour bus routes that travel through the Eastern Harbour Crossing, operated by Kowloon Motor Bus
, New World First Bus
and Citybus
.
The Government of Hong Kong
claimed it was powerless to block the toll increase under the BOT model. This has aroused criticisms that the model was detrimental to the public interest, shifting more traffic to the already congested Cross-Harbour Tunnel
.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. It is a combined road and MTR
MTR
Mass Transit Railway is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system now includes 211.6 km of rail with 155 stations, including 86 railway stations and 69 light rail stops...
rail link under Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour
Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbour situated between Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on the South China Sea were instrumental in Hong Kong's establishment as a British colony and its subsequent...
between Quarry Bay
Quarry Bay
Quarry Bay is an area beneath Mount Parker in the Eastern District of Hong Kong Island, in Hong Kong. The western portion of the area was also formerly known as Lai Chi...
in Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island
Hong Kong Island is an island in the southern part of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. It has a population of 1,289,500 and its population density is 16,390/km², as of 2008...
and Cha Kwo Ling
Cha Kwo Ling
Cha Kwo Ling is a hill in the eastern New Kowloon of Hong Kong, and the area around it. It is adjacent to Victoria Harbour and located to the west of Yau Tong and southwest of Lam Tin. Administratively, it belongs to the Kwun Tong District...
in Kowloon
Kowloon
Kowloon is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. It is bordered by the Lei Yue Mun strait in the east, Mei Foo Sun Chuen and Stonecutter's Island in the west, Tate's Cairn and Lion Rock in the north, and Victoria Harbour in the south. It had a population of...
.
History
The Hong Kong Government negotiated with several consortia to adopt the Build-Operate-TransferBuild-Operate-Transfer
Build-own-operate-transfer or build-operate-transfer is a form of project financing, wherein a private entity receives a concession from the private or public sector to finance, design, construct, and operate a facility stated in the concession contract...
(BOT) model in planning new tunnels in different parts of the city.
In 1986, the government gave New Hong Kong Tunnel the right to run the Tunnel on a 30-year franchise with lease expiring in August 2016. The tunnel features two components, a road part and a rail part:
- The road part of the tunnel is branded as Eastern Harbour Tunnel, although the government refers to the tunnel itself as Eastern Harbour Crossing. The tunnel is governed by the Eastern Harbour Crossing Ordinance.
- The rail part runs between Quarry BayQuarry Bay (MTR)Quarry Bay Station is an underground station on the MTR Island Line on Hong Kong Island and Tseung Kwan O Line between Hong Kong Island and Tseung Kwan O New Town in the New Territories, Hong Kong. The livery is teal green.-Location:...
and Yau TongYau Tong (MTR)Yau Tong is a station on the Hong Kong MTR Kwun Tong Line and the Tseung Kwan O Line. The livery of the station is yellow...
stations of the MTRMTRMass Transit Railway is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system now includes 211.6 km of rail with 155 stations, including 86 railway stations and 69 light rail stops...
Tseung Kwan O Line. The road part links the Island Eastern CorridorIsland Eastern CorridorIsland Eastern Corridor is an expressway along the north shore of Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. It starts from Causeway Bay in the west and ends in Chai Wan in the east. It is part of Route 4...
and Kwun Tong BypassKwun Tong BypassKwun Tong Bypass is an elevated bypass expressway in Kwun Tong, Kowloon, Hong Kong with three lanes in each direction and a posted speed limit of 70-80 kilometres per hour. It comprises part of Route 2 and has links to Route 5 and Route 7....
.
The powerful Chinese investment group CITIC Pacific
CITIC Pacific
CITIC Pacific is a Hong Kong-based conglomerate holding company headquartered in the CITIC Tower, Admiralty, Hong Kong. It is 58% owned by the state-owned Citic Group in Beijing and has shareholders around the world.-Business areas:...
is interested in both parts, controlling the road part (71% stake) and has a 50% stake in the rail part. CITIC also controls 50% of the Western Harbour Tunnel Company
Western Harbour Tunnel Company
The Western Habour Tunnel Company Limited 香港西區隧道有限公司 is a jointly owned entity engaged principally in the construction, maintenance and operation of the Western Harbour Crossing in Hong Kong....
.
Traffic
According to the operator, in 2003, a total number of 26,018,772 vehicles used the Eastern Harbour Tunnel. The average daily throughput was 71,284.There are many cross-harbour bus routes that travel through the Eastern Harbour Crossing, operated by Kowloon Motor Bus
Kowloon Motor Bus
The Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
, New World First Bus
New World First Bus
New World First Bus Services Limited , abbreviated as First Bus and "NWFB", is the third largest public bus operator in Hong Kong.NWFB was established in 1998, taking over China Motor Bus's franchise on 1 September 1998 to provide bus services on Hong Kong Island together with Citybus...
and Citybus
Citybus (Hong Kong)
Citybus Limited is one of the three major bus operators in Hong Kong. It provides both franchised and non-franchised bus service. The franchised route network serves mainly Hong Kong Island, cross-harbour routes , Ocean Park, North Lantau and Hong Kong International Airport...
.
Detailed bus routes
- Kowloon Motor BusKowloon Motor BusThe Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
/New World First BusNew World First BusNew World First Bus Services Limited , abbreviated as First Bus and "NWFB", is the third largest public bus operator in Hong Kong.NWFB was established in 1998, taking over China Motor Bus's franchise on 1 September 1998 to provide bus services on Hong Kong Island together with Citybus...
: 302, 601, 601P, 641, 680, 680P, 680X, 692, 692P, 802, 811 - Kowloon Motor BusKowloon Motor BusThe Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
/CitybusCitybus (Hong Kong)Citybus Limited is one of the three major bus operators in Hong Kong. It provides both franchised and non-franchised bus service. The franchised route network serves mainly Hong Kong Island, cross-harbour routes , Ocean Park, North Lantau and Hong Kong International Airport...
: 307, 606, 606P, 619, 619P, 621, 671, 681, 681P, 690, 690P - Kowloon Motor BusKowloon Motor BusThe Kowloon Motor Bus Company Limited , a company of the Transport International Holdings Limited, is the largest franchised bus operators in Hong Kong, and one of the largest privately owned public bus operators in the world...
: 373, 603, 603P, 603S - CitybusCitybus (Hong Kong)Citybus Limited is one of the three major bus operators in Hong Kong. It provides both franchised and non-franchised bus service. The franchised route network serves mainly Hong Kong Island, cross-harbour routes , Ocean Park, North Lantau and Hong Kong International Airport...
: 698R - New World First BusNew World First BusNew World First Bus Services Limited , abbreviated as First Bus and "NWFB", is the third largest public bus operator in Hong Kong.NWFB was established in 1998, taking over China Motor Bus's franchise on 1 September 1998 to provide bus services on Hong Kong Island together with Citybus...
: 680A, 682, 682P, 694 - Overnights: N601, N619, N680, N691
Controversies
In June 2005, CITIC decided to raise the toll for using Eastern Harbour Crossing from HK$15 to HK$25 for private vehicles and up to 67% for other classes of vehicles, under the fare adjustment mechanism derived from the build-operate-transfer (BOT) model.The Government of Hong Kong
Government of Hong Kong
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China, commonly the Hong Kong Government, is led by the Chief Executive as Head of the Government, who is also the head of the Hong Kong SAR...
claimed it was powerless to block the toll increase under the BOT model. This has aroused criticisms that the model was detrimental to the public interest, shifting more traffic to the already congested Cross-Harbour Tunnel
Cross-Harbour Tunnel
The Cross-Harbour Tunnel is the first tunnel in Hong Kong built underwater. It has become one of the most congested roads in Hong Kong and the world...
.
See also
- List of tunnels and bridges in Hong Kong
- MegaprojectMegaprojectA megaproject is an extremely large-scale investment project. Megaprojects are typically defined as costing more than US$1 billion and attracting a lot of public attention because of substantial impacts on communities, environment, and budgets. Megaprojects can also be defined as "initiatives that...