Raymond Tam Vai Man, the secretary for transport and public works, says that the government is conducting studies on the feasibility of expanding the Light Rapid Transit (LRT) network to include two new routes and possibly expand to other areas in the city in the future.
His remarks, made on Wednesday at the Legislative Assembly, were carried in multiple local media reports.
Without providing a timeline, Tam stated that the priority was the West Line, which would “initially link Qingmao Port [the terminal station of the East Line] to the Fai Chi Kei area and from there, through the Inner Harbour, connect to Taipa via the Taipa Line extension at Barra.”
[See more: LRT’s passenger volume slows after four straight months of growth]
The official also mentioned that another line connecting the artificial island of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and the eastern area of the peninsula, before ending south of Sai Van Lake, was also under consideration. Tam noted that the two projected LRT lines would form a circle around the peninsula.
“We hope that by optimizing the LRT, we can achieve the goal of making this system the primary component of the public transport network,” he added.
Tam meanwhile acknowledged that the choice of e-payment methods used for LRT rides was still limited, and said he was determined to tackle this issue in the near future. He also said that the East Line, currently under construction, would be open to the public in 2029.
