Early traffic spike shows Tai Lam Tunnel vision works
Mable Chan says traffic at the Tai Lam Tunnel was up 10 percent on the first working day since the takeover. Photo: RTHK
The secretary for transport and logistics said traffic on the first working day since the Tai Lam Tunnel takover, which went up by 10 percent, was within expectations.
The rise came in the wee hours between midnight and 6 am on Monday after the government took over the tunnel on Saturday, when a new time-varying toll and a switchover to HKeToll were also implemented.
Charges for all vehicle types were reduced by 22 to 80 percent under the new regime.
Private cars are charged HK$45 during peak hours, HK$30 during regular periods and HK$18 during off-peak periods from Monday to Saturday.
A flat rate of HK$18 is implemented throughout Sundays and public holidays.
Speaking after a tunnel inspection, Mable Chan said she hopes the new arrangement can alleviate congestion on Tuen Mun Road by 5 percent.
"Traffic was up by about 40 percent when compared to the average flow on Sundays," she said.
"This was within our expectations because private cars are now charged HK$18, a significant drop on the previous HK$58 charge.
"So far the traffic situation is within our expectations and under control.
"We hope that cars will opt for Tai Lam Tunnel as this will help alleviate peak-hour congestion on Tuen Mun Road.
"We hope traffic on Tuen Mun Road can be cut by 5 percent during peak hours."
The Transport and Logistics Bureau will closely monitor the traffic situation, Chan said.
The government, she added, will review charges for its tunnels and consider looking into those for Aberdeen and Shing Mun tunnels first as they have remained unchanged for years.
It will also look into imposing a charge for the Central Kowloon Route that is set to be completed by the end of the year to recover costs, she said.
She added that her bureau will brief lawmakers on the review on tunnel tolls this month.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTHK
34 minutes ago
- RTHK
Carbon awareness sees 'big jump' among HK firms
Carbon awareness sees 'big jump' among HK firms The Productivity Council's Keith Choy looks on as his City University counterpart announces a survey finding. Photo: RTHK Awareness of carbon neutrality among companies in Hong Kong has seen a "big jump" of 10 percent. That improvement showed up in a comparison of the result of a Carbon Neutrality Progresses and Challenges 2024/2025 survey of firms with that of two years ago. The results, jointly released by Hong Kong Productivity Council and City University's School of Energy and Environment, indicate that sixty percent of the 126 enterprises that responded remain unfamiliar with carbon neutrality. Nearly 70 percent suggested there is a lack of sufficient resources to implement measures. At least half have never conducted carbon audits or regular assessments and close to 80 percent have not yet established comprehensive carbon neutrality tests. The council says most businesses struggle with high financial capital requirements required to get to carbon neutrality and a lack of price incentives and technical knowledge. Keith Choy, general manager of the green living and innovation division at the council, says a 10 percent improvement in awareness is a big jump. "Hong Kong is [moving] in the right way, we can see that more and more companies, their knowledge on carbon neutrality increased," he said, adding that the survey shows companies are doing much better than two years ago. Choy adds that businesses have been advised to access the council's free tools to assess their carbon performance as well as consult it on improving their business models and accessing government funding support. "In Hong Kong, we still [need] more effort to work on carbon are still in progress but I think we have confidence in Hong Kong."
RTHK
an hour ago
- RTHK
HKMA warns of uncertainty over US rate cuts
HKMA warns of uncertainty over US rate cuts The HKMA reaffirmed its commitment to closely monitoring market developments to maintain monetary and financial stability. File photo: RTHK The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) on Thursday highlighted considerable uncertainty around the extent and pace of future US interest rate cuts, noting that Hong Kong's prevailing interest rate environment may also evolve due to US monetary policy changes, market sentiment and external financial conditions. The statement followed a decision by the US Federal Reserve's Federal Open Market Committee to maintain its key federal funds rate target range at 4.25 to 4.5 percent, which was announced after a two-day policy meeting. The HKMA said Hong Kong's monetary and financial markets continue to function in an orderly manner. It noted a significant influx of Hong Kong dollar (HKD) funding in May, which eased pressure on the exchange rate. However, it said that since late June, the weak-side convertibility undertaking (CU), the mechanism designed to keep the HKD within its trading band, had been triggered multiple times, with the most recent occasion occurring during New York trading hours early on Thursday. "As liquidity became less abundant after the weak-side CU triggering, Hong Kong dollar interbank rates increased moderately from low levels, although they remained at a distance below US dollar interest rates," it said. "The current Hong Kong dollar-US dollar interest rate differential continues to incentivise carry trades to sell Hong Kong dollars for US dollars, keeping the Hong Kong dollar trading near the 7.85 weak-side CU level." The HKMA pointed to strong recent equity-related demand as a factor providing some support for the HKD. Looking ahead, it cautioned that depending on HKD supply and demand dynamics, US monetary policy and rate movements, stock market sentiment and global financial flows, the weak-side CU could be triggered again. The HKMA reaffirmed its commitment to closely monitoring market developments to maintain monetary and financial stability. Additionally, the three note-issuing banks in Hong Kong have followed the Fed's lead to keep the Hong Kong dollar prime rate unchanged, with HSBC and Bank of China (Hong Kong) maintaining rates at 5.25 percent, while Standard Chartered Hong Kong kept its rate at 5.5 percent.
AllAfrica
2 hours ago
- AllAfrica
US tariff deal clears way for Korea's stablecoin dream
TOKYO – As new South Korean President Lee Jae Myung sets out to revamp Asia's fourth-biggest economy, he can cross direct US tariff risks off the list of possible spoilers. Korea's tariff deal with the US removes a gigantic element of uncertainty as Lee gets to work raising Korea's economic game. Though the 15% tax on US-bound goods will hurt, getting the uncertainty factor out of the way will enable Korea Inc to move forward. 'It is a case of the worst avoided, with a pinch of relief removing Korea-specific tariff risks,' says Kathleen Oh, chief Korea economist at Morgan Stanley. 'It puts Korea on level ground with its export competitors in the US, especially for autos.' Eurasia Group analyst Jeremy Chan notes that Korea's agreement hews closely to the deal signed by Japan one week ago and is in line with his view that major US trading partners will be handed around 15% tariff rates. Korea's US$350 billion investment fund mirrors the $550 billion fund announced in Japan's agreement, Chan notes. About 90% of the profits from the fund will reportedly go to the US—the same ratio that Japan received—which Korean officials interpret to mean that 90% of the fund's profits will be re-invested in the US. Like Japan, Chan notes, Korea's fund will be made up almost entirely of loans and guarantees, with direct investment comprising only a very small portion. Korea's commitment to purchase $100 billion in US energy exports will likely include offtake agreements for the Alaska LNG pipeline project that Japan is also exploring. Now Lee will likely have the bandwidth to focus on his newest preoccupation: digital assets. Korean lawmakers are brawling over stablecoins, and the brouhaha couldn't be better for the nation's sudden embrace of the global digital assets boom. The clash is less about whether Korea should become one of the region's crypto-friendly economies in Asia. It's about how to implement the new president's vision for the broad-based issuance of won-backed stablecoins and give digital asset innovation a prominent place globally. Korea joins Hong Kong in efforts to ramp up issuance via legislation. These legislative moves aim to avoid putting the cart before the proverbial horse in a nascent market sure to upend global currency dynamics. Creating trusted and transparent regulatory and licensing regimes will be key to building broader acceptance for the industry. In Seoul's case, Lee's Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and the opposition People Power Party (PPP) are pushing competing stablecoin bills in the National Assembly. DPK member Ahn Do-gil introduced the Act on the Issuance and Distribution of Value-Stable Digital Assets, while the PPP's Kim Eun-hye proposed the Act on Payment Innovation Using Value-Fixed Digital Assets. Lee's push marks his first real economic pivot from the disgraced Yoon Suk Yeol administration. In early April, the courts removed Yoon from office. This was five months after his reckless martial law declaration in December, for which PPP member Yoon was impeached. When Lee's DPK won election in June, the immediate goal was to make up for lost time to stabilize Asia's fourth-biggest economy. Several months of political wrangling over Yoon's fate were a lost period for moves to raise Korea's competitive game. In the interim, the economy shrank in the first quarter as the Kospi stock market gyrated. That left the Bank of Korea largely in the driver's seat. Yet Lee's stablecoin focus suggests his administration has hit the ground running. Typically, Korean regulators are among the most cautious in Asia. All of which makes the Lee administration's stablecoin gambit all the more unexpected. As DPK lawmaker Min Byung-deok, a member of the National Assembly's Political Affairs Committee, puts it, legislation now under consideration would allow non-financial companies to issue won-denominated stablecoins — and to do so beyond the Bank of Korea. The catch is that digital assets would operate under a clear legal framework. Another catch: the BOK may still require some convincing. It worries Lee's stablecoin vision will increase capital outflow risks. Among legislators, provisions would also facilitate security token offerings (STOs) and pave the way for the creation of, and transacting in, spot market exchange-traded funds (ETFs) backed by virtual assets. 'The STO bill will first go through the standing committee next month,' Min says. Min adds that the presidential office's chief policy aide, Kim Yong-beom, a blockchain expert, is 'largely supportive of the bills.' Korea isn't setting the stage for a crypto free-for-all. It plans to tweak strict foreign currency transaction laws accordingly and strengthen oversight in the crypto market by the BOK and the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The BOK must be empowered to play its role in maintaining financial stability,' says DPK member Ahn. 'If stablecoins are used abroad, they become a form of foreign exchange. That means the finance ministry needs a legal foundation to exercise its authority.' Ahn says the process will also be coordinated by the Financial Services Commission. President Lee's team has ordered up a task force on stablecoin implementation. Lee's timing with these crypto reforms could be particularly favorable, as Korea Exchange is exploring digital ETFs, hoping to allow institutions to begin trading them as early as the third quarter. Korea also joins Hong Kong in enjoying something of a first-mover advantage in one of the hottest areas of global finance, one still arguably in the frontier stages. According to Paul Chan, Hong Kong's financial security, the global market value of stablecoins is estimated at about $240 billion, with trading volume topping $20 trillion in 2024. In Korea's case, voters gravitated to Lee's crypto-friendly platform. As of the end of 2024, Koreans held some $74.5 billion worth of digital assets. On the campaign trail, Lee pledges to legalize and nurture digital ETFs, promote the widespread adoption of Korean won-backed stablecoins, streamline regulations to prevent capital flight and even allow the massive $884 billion National Pension Service to invest in digital assets. Yet Lee must multitask in a hurry. Lee inherited an economy under pressure from global tariffs. Despite the US tariff deal, Trump has yet to reach a deal with China. Even as Seoul takes a breather after notching tis tariff deal, it must brace for the shock waves if China refuses to grant Trump the 'grand bargain' deal he seeks. That could see Trump turning his tariff policies up to 11, slamming Korea's open, trade-reliant economy. Over the last six months, BOK Governor Rhee Chang-yong's rate cuts have been the glue holding a fragile economy together. Yet as the BOK cuts rates, it's been limited by domestic constraints. Further rate cuts might encourage households to up borrowing activity. Korea's household debt-to-gross domestic product ratio of 91.7% was the second highest among major nations at the end of 2024. That's the second highest among 38 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development nations. Any step lower in BOK rates risks incentivizing households to increase debt, adding to Korea's biggest imbalances. The vacuum Yoon created left BOK's team squarely in the driver's seat. More and more, the central bank took the lead in managing one of the globe's most open and dynamic major economies.
