New Bypass To Face Acid Test: Frank Chan

The Central-Wanchai Bypass is off to a smooth start as the final section opened at 7am on Sunday, but motorists have been warned that the real test will come at rush hour.

Transport Secretary Frank Chan said the government will be keeping an eye on the situation to step in - if need be - when the bypass has to deal with rush hour traffic.

He called on motorists to pay attention to the traffic news, saying people need time to familiarise themselves with the road conditions and the signage.

One driver told RTHK he's happy with the road signs on the bypass, but he's still worried that there may be chaos during rush hours on weekdays.

After the partial opening of the bypass on January 20, some motorists complained of being delayed in the tunnel for half an hour during peak traffic because of a bottleneck at the exit in Central.

The 4.5-kilometre link is made up of a flyover in Central, and a 3.7 kilometre tunnel and is intended to ease congestion between North Point and Central, particularly on Gloucester Road, Harcourt Road and Connaught Road Central.

The HK$36 billion project has taken 10 years to complete, after being dogged by delays and cost overruns. It was originally slated to be fully operational in 2017.

Last updated: 2019-02-24 HKT 23:31