Editing Transport in Hong Kong (section)

==Infrastructure==
===Ports and harbours===
[[File:Container Port Road South.jpg|thumb|200px| [[Kwai Tsing Container Terminals]] ]]
{{Main|Port of Hong Kong|Victoria Harbour}}

The port of Hong Kong has always been a key factor in the development and prosperity of the territory, which is strategically located on the Far East trade routes and is in the geographical centre of the fast-developing Asia-Pacific Basin. The sheltered harbour provides good access and a safe haven for vessels calling at the port from around the world.

The [[Victoria Harbour]] is one of the busiest ports in the world.<ref>{{Cite web| last = Fischer| first = Umbert| title = Victoria Harbour Hong Kong, the world's most busy sea port| work=Excelloz.com| access-date =26 June 2009| date = 6 October 2006| url = http://www.excelloz.com/Travel_guide/Hong_Kong_City/Victoria_Harbour_Hong_Kong.html}}</ref> An average of 220,000 ships visit the harbour each year, including both oceanliners and river vessels, carrying both goods and passengers. The [[Port of Hong Kong|container port in Hong Kong]] is one of the busiest in the world.<ref>{{Cite book|author=L. Hau Lee, Chung-Yee Lee|title=Building supply chain excellence in emerging economies|url=https://archive.org/details/buildingsupplych00kouv|url-access=limited|year=2007|publisher=Springer|location=New York|isbn=978-0-387-38428-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/buildingsupplych00kouv/page/n214 204]}}</ref> The [[Kwai Chung]] Terminal operates 24 hours a day. Together with other facilities in Victoria Harbour, they handled more than {{TEU|20&nbsp;million|first=yes}} in 2005.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Stopford|first=Martin|title=Maritime Economics E3| date=February 2009 |edition=3rd|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-27558-3|page=560}}</ref> Some 400 container liners serve Hong Kong weekly, connecting to over 500 destinations around the world.

===Airports===
[[File:Hong Kong Kai Tak Airport 1971.jpg|thumb|right| Kai Tak airport]]
[[File:Hong Kong International Airport.jpg|thumb|200px|Inside the newer [[Hong Kong International Airport]]]]

{{Main|Hong Kong International Airport|List of airports in Hong Kong}}
Hong Kong has a fully active international airport. The famous former [[Kai Tak International Airport]] retired in favour of the recently constructed [[Hong Kong International Airport]], also known as Chek Lap Kok International Airport. The airport now serves as a transport hub for East Asia, and as the hub for [[Cathay Pacific]], [[Hong Kong Express]], [[Hong Kong Airlines]], and [[Air Hong Kong]]. Ferry services link the airport with several [[pier]]s in [[Pearl River Delta]], where immigrations and customs are exempted. Kai Tak airport was closed because of privacy reasons and also because of safety reasons; the aircraft came very close to the skyscrapers.

HKIA's network to China expanded with the opening of SkyPier in late-September 2003, offering millions in the PRD direct access to the airport. Passengers coming to SkyPier by high-speed ferries can board buses for onward flights while arriving air passengers can board ferries at the pier for their journeys back to the PRD. Passengers travelling in both directions can bypass custom and immigration formalities, which reduces transit time. Four ports – Shekou, Shenzhen, Macau and Humen (Dongguan) – were initially served. As of August 2007, SkyPier serves Shenzhen's Shekou and Fuyong, Dongguan's Humen, Macau, Zhongshan and Zhuhai. Moreover, passengers travelling from Shekou and Macau piers can even complete airline check-in procedures with participating airlines before boarding the ferries and go straight to the boarding gate for the connecting flight at HKIA. The provision of cross boundary coach and ferry services has transformed HKIA into an inter-modal transportation hub combining air, sea and land transport.

{{As of|2009|March}}, the airport is the third busiest airport for passenger traffic,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Year to date Passenger Traffic – March 2009|work=Airports Council International|access-date=20 July 2009|date=12 June 2009|url=http://www.airports.org/cda/aci_common/display/main/aci_content07_c.jsp?zn=aci&cp=1-5-212-219-227_666_2__}}</ref> and second-busiest airport for cargo traffic in the world.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Year to date Cargo Traffic – March 2009|work=Airports Council International|access-date=20 July 2009|date=12 June 2009|url=http://www.airports.org/cda/aci_common/display/main/aci_content07_c.jsp?zn=aci&cp=1-5-212-219-227_666_2__}}</ref> It is popular with travellers – from 2001 to 2005 and 2007–2008 Hong Kong International Airport has been voted the World's Best Airport in an annual survey of several million passengers worldwide by [[Skytrax]].

According to the [[Guinness Book of World Records|Guinness World Records]], the [[Airport terminal|passenger terminal]] of the HKIA was the world's largest airport terminal upon opening, and is at present the world's third-largest airport terminal building, with a covered area of 550,000 m<sup>2</sup> and recently increased to 570,000 m<sup>2</sup>.<ref>{{Cite web|title=The 'dragon' unveiled: Beijing's T3 starts operations|work=Beijing 2008 Olympic Games|access-date=28 July 2009|date=28 February 2008|url=http://en.beijing2008.cn/news/olympiccities/beijing/n214259388.shtml|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911114757/http://en.beijing2008.cn/news/olympiccities/beijing/n214259388.shtml|archive-date=11 September 2011}}</ref> The [[Airport Core Programme]] was one of the most expensive airport projects in the world.<ref>{{Cite book|publisher=Hong Kong University Press|isbn=978-962-209-847-3|page=169|last=Owen|first=Bernie|author2=Raynor Shaw|title=Hong Kong Landscapes: Shaping the Barren Rock|location=Hong Kong|year=2008}}</ref>

[[Shek Kong Airfield]], located near [[Yuen Long]], is a military [[airfield]] for the [[People's Liberation Army]], which is of limited operating capabilities due to surrounding terrain. The only aircraft operating on the airfield are PLA's [[Eurocopter Dauphin|Z-9]] helicopters, which is the license-built version of the Eurocopter Dauphin.

===Heliports===
{{Main|List of airports in Hong Kong#Heliports|l1=List of heliports in Hong Kong}}
[[File:HK Sheung Wan Shun Tak Centre HK-Macau Ferry Terminal Heliport.JPG|thumb|right|200px| Heliport at the [[Hong Kong–Macau Ferry Terminal]]]]
Hong Kong has three [[heliports]]. [[Shun Tak Heliport]] (ICAO: VHST) is located in the [[Hong Kong–Macau Ferry Terminal]], by the [[Shun Tak Centre]], in [[Sheung Wan]], on [[Hong Kong Island]]. Another is located in southwest Kowloon, near [[Kowloon station (MTR)|Kowloon station]]. The other is located inside [[Hong Kong International Airport]].

[[Heli Express]] operates regular [[helicopter]] service between [[Macao Heliport]] (ICAO:VMMH) on the [[Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal]] in Macau and the Shun Tak Heliport. There are around 16 flights daily. Flights take approximately 20 minutes in the eight-seater aircraft.

There are also a number of [[helipad]]s across the territory, including the roof of the [[The Peninsula Hong Kong|Peninsula Hotel]] (which is the only rooftop helipad in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island, excluding the rooftop heliport of Shun Tak Centre and those in hospitals) and [[Cheung Chau|Cheung Chau Island]], between [[Cheung Chau Tung Wan Beach|Tung Wan Beach]] and [[Kwun Yam Beach]].

===Highways===
{{further|List of streets and roads in Hong Kong|Hong Kong Strategic Route and Exit Number System}}
[[File:HK Cross Harbour Tunnel.jpg|thumb|200px|The entrance of the [[Cross-Harbour Tunnel]], which is part of [[Route 1 (Hong Kong)|Route 1]], in [[Hung Hom]], [[Kowloon]].]]
[[File:Eastern Harbour Tunnel.jpg|thumb|200px|The [[Eastern Harbour Crossing|Eastern Harbour Tunnel]] is the second under-water tunnel across [[Victoria Harbour]], and is part of [[Route 2 (Hong Kong)|Route 2]].]]
[[File:Tsing Ma Bridge (1).jpg|thumb|200px|[[Tsing Ma Bridge]], part of [[Route 8 (Hong Kong)|Route 8]], is [[List of longest suspension bridges|the world's longest rail and road]] [[suspension bridge]]s.]]
[[File:Kap Shui Mun Bridge 1.jpg|thumb|200px|[[Kap Shui Mun Bridge]] is a [[cable-stayed bridge]] connecting [[Ma Wan]] and [[Lantau Island]], and is also part of [[Route 8 (Hong Kong)|Route 8]].]]

There are a total of {{nowrap|cvt|1,831|km|mi}} of paved highways in Hong Kong. These roads are built to British standards with a maximum of four lanes with hard shoulders.

There are nine roads classified as trunk roads in Hong Kong and were renumbered from 1 to 9 in 2004. Routes 1 to 3 are in a north–south direction (with each crossing one of the cross-harbour tunnels) while the others are in an east–west direction:

*[[Route 1 (Hong Kong)|Route 1]]:
::Southern District ⇄ Wan Chai ⇄ Hung Hom ⇄ Kowloon Tong ⇄ Sha Tin
*[[Route 2 (Hong Kong)|Route 2]]:
::Eastern District ⇄ Kwun Tong ⇄ Wong Tai Sin ⇄ Sha Tin
*[[Route 3 (Hong Kong)|Route 3]]:
::Central & Western District ⇄ West Kowloon ⇄ Sham Shui Po ⇄ Kwai Tsing ⇄ Tsuen Wan ⇄ Yuen Long
*[[Route 4 (Hong Kong)|Route 4]]:
::Eastern District ⇄ Wan Chai ⇄ Central ⇄ Sai Ying Pun
*[[Route 5 (Hong Kong)|Route 5]]:
::Kowloon City ⇄ Yau Ma Tei ⇄ Sham Shui Po ⇄ Kwai Tsing ⇄ Tsuen Wan
*[[Route 7 (Hong Kong)|Route 7]]:
::Tseung Kwan O ⇄ Kwun Tong ⇄ Wong Tai Sin ⇄ Sham Shui Po ⇄ Kwai Chung
*[[Route 8 (Hong Kong)|Route 8]]:
::Sha Tin <> Kwai Tsing ⇄ Lantau Island North ⇄ Tung Chung ⇄ Airport
*[[Route 9 (Hong Kong)|Route 9]]:
::Circular Route linking the whole New Territories (Sha Tin, Tai Po, Northern District, Yuen Long, Tuen Mun, Tsuen Wan)
*[[Route 10 (Hong Kong)|Route 10]]:
::Tuen Mun ⇄ Nam Tei (Divided from Route 9) ⇄ Ha Tsuen ⇄ Deep Bay ⇄ Shenzhen Bay Bridge ⇄ Shenzhen Bay Border Crossing ⇄ Mainland China

[[Route 6 (Hong Kong)|Route 6]] is a proposed highway, and is now under construction.
[[File:Kowloon Tsai, Hong Kong - panoramio (1).jpg|thumb|Prince Edward Road and Kai Tak Airport.]]
There are 120 [[Closed-circuit television|CCTV]] cameras monitoring traffic on these highways and connecting roads which are available on-demand ([[Now TV (Hong Kong TV channel)|Now TV]]) and on the Transport Department's website.

Highways in Hong Kong use two types of barrier system for divided highways. Older roads use metal guard rails and newer roads use the British [[Concrete step barrier]].

All signage on highways and roads in Hong Kong are bilingual (traditional Chinese below and English above). Street signs use black text on a white background. Highway and directional signage are white lettering on blue or green background.

===Bridges and tunnels===
{{Main|List of tunnels and bridges in Hong Kong}}

There are 13 major vehicular tunnels in Hong Kong. They include three cross-harbour tunnels and ten road tunnels.

Other road tunnels and bridges which are proposed or under construction are:

* [[Central Kowloon Route]]
* Trunk Road T2

===Bus lanes===
[[File:HK Wan Chai North Walkway Gloucester Road Fortis Bank Tower Beijing 2008 a.jpg|thumb|200px|A [[bus lane]] on [[Gloucester Road, Hong Kong|Gloucester Road]] in [[Wan Chai]], with the words "bus lane" painted in English and "巴士綫" in Chinese]]
There are approximately 22 km of [[bus lane|bus priority lanes]] in Hong Kong.

===Bus terminals===
There are 298 bus terminals in Hong Kong.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201812/12/P2018121200219.htm|title=立法會十七題：為專營巴士公司員工提供配套設施|publisher=Government of Hong Kong|access-date=2020-03-09}}</ref> Notable examples include:
* [[Admiralty (East) Public Transport Interchange]]
* [[Central (Macau Ferry) Bus Terminus]]
* [[Pokfield Road Bus Terminus]]
* [[Kwun Tong Ferry Bus Terminus]]
* [[Central (Exchange Square) Bus Terminus]]

===Bicycles===
Bike path exists across Hong Kong, mostly in newly developed residential areas in New Territories. Most of the traditional urban core does not have bike paths, with them only present in some newly redeveloped or reclaimed coastal areas.

A network of bike rental shops is present near bike paths, in addition to dockless bike renting apps, enabling infrequent users to lease and drop off their bikes along bike paths.

Most public transit require bikes to be folded up and wheels be removed before bikes can be allowed to board.

===Pedestrian===
====Escalators and moving pavements====
[[File:HK Central Cochrane Street Central-Mid-Levels escalators Upsidedown.JPG|thumb|right|200px|[[Central–Mid-Levels escalator]] ]]
{{Main|Central–Mid-Levels escalator}}

[[Hong Kong Island]] is dominated by steep, hilly terrain, which required the development of unusual methods of transport up and down the slopes. In [[Central and Western District]], there is an extensive system of [[Zero-fare public transport|zero-fare]] [[escalator]]s and [[moving pavement]]s. The [[Central–Mid-Levels escalator|Mid-Levels Escalator]] is the longest outdoor covered escalator system in the world,<ref name="escalator">{{Cite web| last = Boland| first = Rory| title = Hong Kong's Central-Mid Levels Escalator – The Longest in the World| work=About.com| access-date =19 July 2009| url = http://gohongkong.about.com/od/whattoseeinhk/a/midlevelsescala.htm}}</ref> operating downhill until 10am for [[commuter]]s going to work, and then operating uphill until midnight.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Jahnke|first=Morgen|title=The Central – Mid-Levels Escalator|work=Interesting Thing of the Day|access-date=25 July 2009|date=26 February 2007|url=http://itotd.com/articles/623/the-central---mid-levels-escalator/}}</ref>

The Mid-levels Escalator consists of twenty escalators and three moving pavements. It is 800 metres long,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dennis |first=Bernard |title=China: The Business Traveller's Handbook |publisher=Interlink Books |year=2003 |isbn=1-56656-495-6 |edition=1 |page=214}}</ref> and climbs 135 vertical metres.<ref>{{Cite book|publisher=World Scientific Publishing|isbn=978-981-270-771-0|page=138|last=Lim|first=William S. W.|title=Asian Alterity: With Special Reference to Architecture + Urbanism Through the Lens of Cultural Studies|year=2007|others=forewords by Andrew Lee, Leong Teng Wui, Linda Lim & Lim Teck Ghee}}</ref> Total travel time is approximately 25 minutes,<ref name="escalator"/> but most people walk while the escalator moves to shorten the travel time. Due to its vertical climb, the same distance is equivalent to several miles of zigzagging roads if travelled by car. Daily traffic exceeds 35,000 people. It has been operating since 1993 and cost [[Hong Kong dollar|HK$]]240,000,000 (US$30,000,000) to build.

A smaller Mid-Levels escalator system was built on [[Centre Street (Hong Kong)|Centre Street]] in [[Sai Ying Pun]]. Also in Sai Ying Pun are small escalators between First and Second Streets, in an uphill plaza that forms a giant hole through the Island Crest building. There is also a small escalator on Sands Street in [[Kennedy Town]]. There have been several more proposed outdoor escalators, including plans for [[Pound Lane]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/1278153/historic-pound-lane-may-get-escalator-system | title=Historic Pound Lane may get escalator system | date=9 July 2013 }}</ref> the entrance to the campus of the [[University of Hong Kong]] (which already has some escalators within and connecting it with the MTR) and projects in parts of Hong Kong away from Hong Kong Island.

====Pedestrian bridges, tunnels, and skyways====
{{expand section|date=August 2022}}
Example includes:
* [[Central Elevated Walkway]]
* [[Wanchai North Skyway Platform]] 
* [[Cross Bay Link|Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Bridge]]
* [[Lek Yuen Bridge]]

==== Pavement railings ====
During [[2019–2020 Hong Kong protests|the 2019–2020 pro-democracy protests]] in Hong Kong, {{convert|60|km|mi}} of pavement railings were damaged by the demonstrators.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-09-15|title=CityLab Daily: Hong Kong's Much-Hated Pedestrian Fences Won't Die|language=en|work=Bloomberg.com|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2020-09-15/citylab-daily-hong-kong-s-much-hated-pedestrian-fences-won-t-die|access-date=2020-11-20}}</ref> Hong Kong's Transport and Highways Departments spent an estimated HK$15 million ($1.9 million) of taxpayer money rebuilding and reinforcing the fencing.<ref name="Prasso">{{Cite news|last=Prasso|first=Sheridan|date=September 14, 2020|title=In Hong Kong, the Pedestrian Fences Are Political|language=en|work=Bloomberg.com|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-14/hong-kong-s-much-hated-pedestrian-fences-won-t-die|access-date=November 20, 2020}}</ref> The city government has more than doubled its installation of pedestrian rails, from {{convert|730|km|mi}} in 2010 to {{convert|1500|km|mi}} by 2018.<ref name="Prasso"/> Many of the railings prevent pedestrians from walking in a straight line along major roads by prohibiting direct crossing of perpendicular side streets.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-03-26|title=Hong Kong's endless railings corral pedestrians like sheep|url=https://www.scmp.com/magazines/post-magazine/article/1929972/hong-kongs-endless-railings-corral-pedestrians-sheep|access-date=2020-11-20|website=South China Morning Post|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=An urban planner mapped every NYC street, and it's 'extremely difficult' to social distance|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/urban-planner-mapped-every-nyc-street-showing-it-s-extremely-n1189936|access-date=2020-11-20|website=NBC News|date=22 April 2020 |language=en}}</ref> Paul Zimmerman, a [[district councils of Hong Kong|district councillor]] and a member of a government advisory commission to improve urban design,{{which|date=June 2022}} and other pavement-fence critics argue the barriers are emblematic of the way Hong Kong streets are built to prioritise vehicles over pedestrians. The city likes the guardrails because they do not want to slow turning cars but prioritising vehicles limits the ''throughput capacity'' of the city.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-04-22|title=Designing to Move People|url=https://nacto.org/publication/transit-street-design-guide/introduction/why/designing-move-people/|access-date=2020-11-20|website=National Association of City Transportation Officials|language=en-US}}</ref> Pedestrians who want to walk faster than the shuffling crowds must go into the streets, exposing them to vehicle traffic. The Transport and Highways departments say the railings are critical “to regulate and guide pedestrians for road safety and traffic management purposes.”<ref>{{Cite web|title=LCQ10: Public facilities being vandalised|url=https://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/202006/10/P2020061000378.htm|access-date=2020-11-20|website=www.info.gov.hk}}</ref> Hong Kong's high ''population density'' makes ''pedestrian mobility'' complicated and the railings offer a clear distinction between the automobiles and walkers.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Table E489 : Land area, mid-year population and population density by District Council district {{!}} Census and Statistics Department|url=https://www.censtatd.gov.hk/hkstat/sub/sp150.jsp?productCode=D5320189|access-date=2020-11-20|website=www.censtatd.gov.hk}}</ref> But in a city where less than 10% of the population owns a car, anti-fence advocates question why automobiles get primacy.<ref name="Prasso"/> Nonprofit groups like Walk DVRC, in conjunction with Zimmerman, have worked to remove some of the guardrails but the city believes they are necessary. The railings, which are too flimsy to fend off cars, provide little to no protection from automobiles.<ref>{{Cite journal|author=Street Behaviour|date=July 2017|title=Transport for London Road Network|url=http://foi.tfl.gov.uk/FOI-2274-1718/Pedestrian%20railings%20removal%20collisions%20analysis%20%28no%20stats19%29.pdf|journal=Transport for London|pages=3–4}}</ref> Walk DVRC has submitted a detailed proposal including pictures and recommendations for 456 railings.<ref name="Walk DVRC">{{Cite web|title=Railing over railings|url=https://www.walkdvrc.hk/upload/files/research/20200624120139_108.pdf|website=Des Voeux Road Central|publisher=Walk DVRC Ltd.|access-date=November 20, 2020}}</ref> There are 105 of those that they claim “have been removed to the benefit of pedestrians” and should not be reinstalled.<ref name="Walk DVRC"/> Nevertheless, the city is determined to replace the removed railings and is moving forward despite public pushback.