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Hong Kong's legislature approves extra funds for high-speed railway

Xinhua, March 11, 2016 Adjust font size:

Hong Kong's Legislative Council(LegCo) approved the 19.6-billion-HK dollar extra funds on Friday for the construction of a high-speed railway linking the Chinese mainland.

The lawmakers approved the funds (about 2.53 billion U.S. dollars) before deadline after months of deliberation which was frequently delayed by the opposition's filibuster.

From West Kowloon to Shenzhen, the 26-km-long high-speed railway is a section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Rail Link project.

The Hong Kong section started construction in 2010, and so far more than 70 percent has been completed.

Due to construction delays, the Hong Kong government's original appropriation will be spent out in June.

If the LegCo fails to approve the extra funds, the MTR Corporation, the railway's developer and operator, will have to halt the construction since it has to notice contractors of the halt three months in advance. Frederick Ma, chairman of the MTR Corporation, said he feels joyful about the LegCo's decision since the company now could cancel a prepared program for halting the construction.

According to the MTR Corporation, the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Rail Link will be completed in 2018 if the construction could continue. Endit