Walkway Fulfills Harbourfront Vision

Since opening late last month, the Eastern Section of the East Coast Boardwalk, at North Point, has been a popular draw among members of the public eager to enjoy the harbourfront.

The East Coast Boardwalk is located under the Island Eastern Corridor, a major expressway along the north shore of Hong Kong Island. As with the Western Section, the Eastern Section is designated as a “Harbourfront Shared Space”, meaning it can be put to flexible use.

Civil Engineering & Development Department Senior Engineer Terence Yeung explained that besides functioning as a dedicated walkway for pedestrians, it offers a number of special features, including an “experiential” glass observatory deck that gives visitors direct views of the harbour beneath the boardwalk.

Near Tin Chiu Street, a pet-friendly area invites visitors and their leashed pets to relax and play. In addition, several multi-functional open spaces are available for hosting exhibitions, art displays and community activities upon application.

Challenges overcome

The East Coast Boardwalk’s construction involved multiple challenges, including restricted headroom under the Island Eastern Corridor, narrow waterways and a lack of land access for transportation.

The project team adopted various strategies to overcome these obstacles.

Mr Yeung said: “On one hand, we utilised the existing foundations of the Island Eastern Corridor, with an aim to reduce the number of marine piles to be constructed.

“On the other hand, we transported the prefabricated deck segments to the site by barge, and flexibly used different methods to install the deck segments one by one accurately. The average weight of the deck segments is about 350 tonnes.”

Harbourfront vision

One kilometre in length, the addition of the Eastern Section marks the East Coast Boardwalk’s completion. The walkway now stretches along 13km from Kennedy Town to Shau Kei Wan.

Harbourfront Commission Chairman Ivan Ho said this “last kilometre” fulfills a core aim of enhancing harbourfront areas, allowing them to become an attractive, vibrant, accessible and sustainable asset for the people of Hong Kong to enjoy.

Looking ahead, the Harbourfront Commission will continue to develop and enhance harbourfront areas along both sides of Victoria Harbour, especially on the Kowloon side.

Mr Ho outlined that several harbourfront venues in Kowloon are under development, including a promenade in front of the Kai Tak New Acute Hospital and a character-filled event space at the Former Hung Hom Railway Freight Yard Pier.

“The pedestrian walkway next to the public cargo working area in Yau Ma Tei is also expected to be completed this year, linking the West Kowloon Cultural District and the Tai Kok Tsui area.

“We will continue to work towards the goal of extending the promenade length on both sides of Victoria Harbour to 34km by 2028.”