ITSHK Newsletter Issue 04 May 2001

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• Advanced Public Transit System (APTS) - this includes all the innovative hi-tech initiatives from the public transport sectors in Hong Kong. Hong Kong with any question has the most efficient and cost-effective transit market in the world, and has the potential to become the pioneer in this area.
• Commercial Vehicle Operation (CVO) - This includes weight-in-motion (WIM), two-way communication, etc. that should help the cross-border situation and enhance the service quality of the trucking/shipping industries.

The SC will:

• Collect and evaluate international standards information on the respective topics
• Consider the appropriateness of applying such international standards to the local Hong Kong environment as well as China as a whole.
• Make recommendations on the application of such standards whether possible
• Disseminate such information to the relevant parties in Hong Kong as well as China as a whole.
• Promote and advise on the implementation of standards.
• Exchange standards information with other international ITS counterparts.
• Represent HK on the worldwide standards committees, such as the TC204.

The ultimate objectives of the SC will be:

• To be the leader in ITS standards (international or local) in Hong Kong.
• To promote the adoption of internationally recognized ITS standards by the private industry and government bodies.
• To represent HK on the worldwide standards development.

On Memberships, it has been suggested a number of around 12. A mixture of expertise from different background should be considered. On invitation of suitable members, we should have a mix of academic, industrialists and government officials.

The SC is targetted to be established before the next AGM (5 July 2001). A forum on the topic will be held with all members’ presence shortly. Your support and contribution will be expected. Should you wish to discuss further, drop me a note at nelson.yung@its-hk.org.

- click to download full report

ITS Friends from Korea

The Director of the ITS Division of the Ministry of Construction and Transportation of Korea, Mr Tae-Sam Chun, and the Head of ITS Research Team I of the Korea Transport Institute, Dr Sanghoon Bae, paid a visit to Hong Kong on 23-24 April 2001. Members of ITS-HK arranged a visit to the Control Centres of Tsing Ma Control Area on 24 April 2001 for our two Korean friends. The informal discussions between the ITSHK and our guests were focused on the Hong Kong experience in Automatic Toll Collection and Electronic Road Pricing, as Korea is close to finalising the standard to be adopted in Korea in these two areas. Special thanks to Tsing Ma Management Limited in arranging the visit.
(Above: Presentation of Souvenirs to Tsing Ma Management Limited. from left: Ir Albert So (ITSHK), Dr Sanghoon Bae (Korea), Ir John Sze (ITSHK), Mr Philip Sze (TMML), Mr Tae-Sam Chun (Korea) and Mr Steve Ng (TMML))
Dr Bae has also kindly left a copy of his paper on “The National ITS Strategic Plan in Korea for the 21^st century” to ITS-HK. Members interested may contact editor@its-hk.org for a copy.
(Left: ITSHK explaining the implementation of ERP to our friends in Korea. from left: Ir KM Tsang & Ir Sze (ITSHK), Dr Bae & Mr Chun (Korea), and Mr Jason Wong (ITSHK))

Special Features

Highway and Urban Traffic Management in Hong Kong
– An Overview of ITS in Hong Kong (Part 2) Ir Toni Zen

- Part 1 How It Begins and Traffic Information
- Part 3 Demand Management and Institutional Arrangement

In the last issue, the ITS development on Traffic Information was discussed. This issue will focus on Hong Kong highway and urban traffic management using Traffic Control and Surveillance System and Area Traffic Control.

The first comprehensive Traffic Control and Surveillance System (TCSS) was installed on the Tsing Ma Control Area (TMCA) (which covers the Lantau Link leading to the Chek Lap Kok International Airport) for safety and operational purposes. Full Variable Message Signs (VMSs) including variable speed limits advising motorists of the reduced mandatory speed limits under foggy and windy conditions were employed.

All Hong Kong tunnels are equipped with TCSS equipment including emergency telephones (ETs), Closed-circuit Television (CCTV) cameras, automatic incident detectors, overheight vehicle detectors, traffic signals and VMS. CCTV cameras have been installed on strategic highways since 1995.

A study on the "Provision, Management and Operation of Traffic Control and Surveillance Facilities for the Strategic Road Network (SRN)" was completed in 1999. The study developed a strategy and implementation plan for the deployment of ITS to help manage the use of strategic roads and reduce congestion (refer to "Opportunities of Deploying ITS on the SRN in Hong Kong" by Ir Leo Lee, Ir KM Tsang and Ir Richard Ko). In addition, the dedicated Traffic Management and Information Centre (TMIC) will "serve as a central processing and coordination centre for traffic management, traveller information and incident management of all SRN roads. (C of T's speech in February 2000 " The TMIC study is, in a way, an extension to the SRN TCSS study. (see last issue for more on TMIC)

On the urban roads, 75% of the signalised junctions, representing around 1070 in number, are covered by the Area Traffic Control (ATC) systems. Started as a pilot scheme in West Kowloon in 1977, the then ATC was actually the first computerised traffic control system in Southeast Asia. It was recorded that comparing to pre-ATC period, journey time was reduced by 30%, number of stops by vehicles dropped by 28% and stopping time cut by 52% (http://www.info.gov.hk/td/eng/publications/images/7e.pdf). Based on these results, ATC has been extended to other parts of the territory since then. The Transport Advisory Committee has recommended a further spending of HK$610 million till 2006 to extend the ATC to new towns.

(left: Operator working at the ATC in Kowloon)

Both the Split, Cycle Offset and Optimisation Technique (SCOOT) and Sydney Co-ordinated Adaptive Traffic System (SCATS) are used in Hong Kong. These are controlled through three control centres and monitored real-time through CCTV located at strategic locations. The HKSAR Transport Department (TD) is currently looking at updating these systems and is considering to combine the three ATC control centres into one in 2006, and most probably be co-located with the TMIC.

Locally, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed a system named Dynamic Intersection Control Optimisation (DISCO). Based on the fundamental relationship between traffic flow and density, their simulation results showed that this system was able to reduce delay by 35% when compared with existing software. It is yet to be seen if this local development will be adopted. The University of Hong Kong, on the other hand, is investigating on the technology of using Light Emitting Diode (LED) for possible transmission of information to road users.

No Electronic Road Pricing till 2011

The Government announced on 24 April 2001 that due to the anticipated low traffic growth, the Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) study commenced in 1998 concluded that ERP would not be necessary in Hong Kong in the next ten years. However, the study had proven that both Dedicated Short Range Communication and Vehicle Positioning System are viable in Hong Kong even in the urban areas and with equipment mounted underneath existing footbridges and overpasses. (more)

More Local News (with courtesy of HKIE-YMC)

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