FTU: Policy Speech Let Down Congested Eastern Kowloon

John Lee's Policy Address failed to address the problems of a fast-growing area of eastern Kowloon that is congested and short of transport links, the Federation of Trade Unions said on Friday.

The unionist group said about 300,000 residents of areas such as Shun Tin and Sau Mau Ping were seeing their livelihoods suffer because they lacked mass transport links.

It expressed disappointment that the Chief Executive failed to announce help for the area, especially given that a further 100,000 people are expected to move to new public housing there in future.

Officials had put forward plans in 2014 for an East Kowloon MTR line that would serve the area. Lee announced six major transport projects in his policy blueprint on Wednesday, including a Tseung Kwan O line extension and a new Central Rail Link to connect Kam Tin in Yuen Long with Kowloon Tong via Kwai Chung, but the East Kowloon line was not mentioned.

“We just wait, wait for so many years. The Policy Address also ignores this project. So we are quite disappointed,” said lawmaker Bill Tang, who represents Kowloon East.

The FTU proposed building a rubber-tyred metro, a type of rail system that is better suited to the area's steep slopes than other types of railway. It said the system would have five stations along the area's hillside and end at MTR stations such as Po Lam or Lam Tin to make commuting more convenient.