Newly appointed Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan pledged to actively utilize new technologies and fully advance Hong Kong’s railway projects during her first appearance at a Legislative Council meeting in her new role on Friday.

Chan vowed to proactively pursue technological and policy innovation as the work of her team progresses. She said she envisions adopting new technologies from Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland, and overseas to drive the city’s infrastructure developments.

Chan said that she is anticipating a heavy workload over the next two to five years, and hopes to accelerate the process with efficiency, adding that the engineering sector should plan for more manpower in advance to cope with future demand.

During the meeting, she said the authorities are promoting various local railway projects, including the  MTR Tung Chung Line Extension, Siu Ho Wan Station, and the MTR Tuen Mun South Extension. Construction on these projects has already commenced and will be completed successively from 2027.

She said the construction of the main line of the  MTR Northern Link is expected to commence in 2025, with the goal of completion by 2034.

Additionally, the authorities recently decided that the South Island Line (West) will utilize a smart green public transport system with an elevated structure instead of the traditional heavy rail system, which could reduce the cost by up to 40 percent, according to Chan.

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The design part of the project is expected to begin next year, with construction scheduled for 2027.

She explained that the hilly terrain along the South Island Line (West) would lead to higher costs if a heavy rail system were to be developed. Developing an elevated structure, however, will reduce the problems associated with covering such terrain, she added.

Because of the steep terrain, a tunnel design will be adopted for part of the section traversing from Queen Mary Hospital to the University of Hong Kong.

Compared to a heavy rail system, construction of the new system will generate less noise.

Chan said that, as the new system is different from the heavy rail project originally expected by residents, the authorities will take the time to explain to the public why this change is necessary.

While the new system saves on costs, the hourly capacity will be reduced by 40 percent, but the government has said that the trains will still be able to carry 20,000 passengers per hour, which officials believe is sufficient to meet demand.

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Lawmaker Chan Hok-fung reminded the government to be mindful of the impact the railway viaduct could have on the landscape.

Legislator Lo Wai-kwok said he hopes the authorities will promptly announce the route that the new system will follow, to allow sufficient time to collect public opinion.

Contact the writer at fangxue@chinadailyhk.com