New section of Hong Kong’s Central Kowloon Bypass to ‘slash travel time by 80%’
Transport chief Mable Chan hails new Yau Ma Tei section of bypass, expected to cut cross-Kowloon travel times from 30 minutes to five
The long-awaited Yau Ma Tei section of Hong Kong’s Central Kowloon Bypass opened on Sunday, with eight bus routes – including three new ones – to begin operating on Monday, cutting peak-hour travel time between West and East Kowloon from 30 minutes to just five.
The new 4.7km transport corridor includes a 3.9km, three-lane, two-way tunnel linking the Kai Tak Development Area and Kowloon Bay with Yau Ma Tei. Traffic began to build at about 10am as Shing Kai Road in Kai Tak connected to the new link.
Among the first drivers eager to test the route was engineer Edwin Chan Yat-man, 36, who travelled from his home in Kwun Tong to Mong Kok, and praised the faster access.
“While it initially required some patience due to the volume of cars at the entrance, the ride was pretty smooth,” he said.
“Taking Prince Edward Road West or Argyle Street is usually much slower because I need to navigate the traffic, but now I can reach my destination in about six minutes through the tunnel.”
Tsui Kwun-cheung, 32, a garment businessman from Tseung Kwan O who was driving to Lai Chi Kok, said he planned to use the link for his daily commute after his test run on Sunday.