Transportation Infrastructure Office (GIT) Director Lei Chan Tong said Monday that his office had decided to extend the public consultation period for the northern peninsula section of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) to provide citizens with more time to understand the information put out on the government’s three proposals so that they will be able to have a “rational” discussion.
Lei also said that his office would provide more detailed information on the three proposals later so that citizens can make comparisons.
GIT officials announced last week that they would extend the public consultation period, which was originally slated to end on Thursday next week, to September 28.
Lei made the comments before co-hosting a public consultation session for the city’s environmental protection groups, at the Environmental Protection Bureau (DSPA) in Nape.
Lei said his office knew that members of the public had expressed various concerns about the three proposals. He also said the northern section was very important as it would cover 40 percent of the population. He said his office had therefore decided to extend the consultation period.
“There is a large amount of information on the three proposals…we think it will be beneficial if everyone has more time to understand all the information”, Lei said.
Lei reiterated that the LRT project should not be delayed any longer because it would reduce traffic congestion in the city, adding that it was important to reach a consensus as soon as possible.
“The three proposals have their own pros and cons, citizens have to face reality. You have to first accept the cons before you will be able to enjoy the pros, no matter you choose proposal one, two or three”, Lei said.
Lei also said that while the government aimed to decide which proposal would be adopted by the end of this year, there was a need to extend the consultation period. “We would rather not see any problems during the construction period because of a [bad] proposal caused by a hasty [public consultation]”, he said.
Lei said his office would study the opinions collected earlier and would later provide the public with more information, based on the opinions and concerns of the public. He also said his office would increase the number of consultation sessions.
A government official said last week that the city’s LRT project would probably only be completed in 2022.(macaunews/macaupost)
