Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road (屯門赤鱲角隧道公路), or TMCLK Tunnel (屯赤隧道) for short, is the northern link of the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link (TM-CLKL), comprising of a dual two-lane, twin-tube submarine tunnel connecting Pillar Point in Tuen Mun District, New Territories, with the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities Island in the Islands District. The 8.1km-long highway, includes the 5km-long tunnel across the Urmston Road (龍鼓水道) is the longest tunnel in Hong Kong and was opened at 8am on 27 December 2020.
Upon its opening, the Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road becomes an alternative external road linking Lantau Island after the Lantau Link, and it is also the first cross-harbour tunnel not to connect both sides of Victoria Harbour, with toll-free arrangement and not belonging to any Strategic Routes.
History[]
In summary, the TM-CLKL is about 9km long, comprising a 5.5km long northern link road (including a submarine tunnel of about 5km) connecting Pillar Point in Tuen Mun District to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities Island in the Islands District, and a 1.9km long land elevated road and a 1.6 kilometre long cross-harbour elevated road connecting the HKBCF to the North Lantau Highway off the MTR Siu Ho Wan Depot from the HZMB. This section of elevated road can be used to travel between the HKBCF and the urban area or the New Territories directly without having to pass through the roads in the Tung Chung area.
In view of the long-term development and traffic needs of Northwest New Territories and Lantau, the Government obtained funding from the Legislative Council in early 2007 to carry out the investigation and preliminary design of the Tuen Mun Western Bypass and the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link. The new road will be combined with the Kong Sham Western Highway to form Route 10, which is expected to provide a new link between the Shenzhen Bay Port, western Tuen Mun, the Hong Kong International Airport and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge in 2016. The Government reported the findings of the NWNT Traffic and Infrastructure Review to the Legislative Council Panel on Transport in July of the same year and proposed the construction of the Tuen Mun - Chek Lap Kok Link and the Tuen Mun Western Bypass to meet future traffic demand.[1]
In 2007, the then Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Donald Tsang, announced in his 2007-2008 Policy Address the construction of the Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Link (TM-CLKL) to connect Pillar Point in Tuen Mun, New Territories, with Tai Ho on the Lantau Island, Islands District (connecting with the North Lantau Highway) as a more direct link between the Northwest New Territories and Lantau Island. The northern link includes a sub-sea road tunnel, which is bored using the "mixed gas saturation diving mode" technology to avoid the large amount of siltation that would be generated by traditional caisson or immersed tube construction methods, thus greatly reducing damage to the marine environment. This is the fifth sub-sea tunnel in the world to be built using this technology, and the first of its kind in Hong Kong.
The Highways Department consulted the Tuen Mun District Council on the TM-CLKL in May 2009 and the Council supported the project; in November 2011, the Government commenced the detailed design, site investigation and advance works and obtained funding approval of about $1.9 billion from the Legislative Council to proceed. The completion of the southern link of the TM-CLKL was originally scheduled to dovetail with the completion of the HZMB Main Bridge, which is expected to be commissioned in 2016, while the northern link was originally scheduled to be completed by the end of 2018. However, due to technical difficulties, neither of them was completed in accordance with the original target. The Southern Link Road, named Shun Long Road, was completed in March 2017 and opened first with the commissioning of the HZMB on 24 October 2018, while the tunnel and Northern Link Road was expected be fully commissioned in March 2019.
In October 2020, the road was gazetted as the Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road.[2] In November, it was announced that the road would be opened to traffic on 27 December 2020 at 8:00 a.m. The existing LWB routes A33, A33X, E33, E33P and NA33 would be diverted to this road from the first bus on the following day, and the Route A34, which passes through this road, would be put into service on the same day to replace the existing Route A33P[3]. Meanwhile, residents' bus routes NR707, NR711 and NR720 will also run on this route on the day following the opening of the highway, and will then be used to access Tuen Mun depending on road conditions.[4]
On the morning of 26 December, 2020, the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, together with the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Mr Chan Fan, the Permanent Secretary for Transport and Housing (Transport), Mrs Mabel Chan, the Commissioner for Transport, Mrs Law Suk Pui, and the Director of Highways, Mr Chan Pai Ming, officiated at the opening ceremony of the Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Highway in Tuen Mun and rode on a Citybus Enviro 500 open-top bus (26/PR7978, ex-fleet no. 8203) wrapped in light blue with full body advertising for the opening ceremony, with the front electronic display reading "Tuen Mun ▬ Chek Lap Kok". The bus then drove out of the TMCLK Tunnel and broke the ribbon.[5] The same day, a former China Motor Bus Daimler Fleetline, owned by Jumbo Bus also crossed the tunnel alongside various coaches.
In February 2021, Resident Bus Route NR766 was diverted to run between Hong Kong Gold Coast and the Airport via the Tunnel, becoming the first Resident Bus route to use this tunnel on a regular basis.
On 20 June 2021, the second phase of route rationalisation was implemented, with routes A36, A37, N30 and NA37 between Yuen Long District and the Airport; routes E36, E36A and E37 reconfigured from routes E34A, E34B, E34P and E34X; and route NA36 reconfigured from route NA34 all diverted via the TMCLK Tunnel.
On 20 December 2021, LWB Route E37C commenced service, which is the first new route to be introduced after the opening of the Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road and is not part of the above reorganisation plan.
On 18 July 2022, LWB Route R33 was diverted via the Tunnel between Tuen Mun and Disneyland, meaning that all regular routes between Tuen Mun and Lantau Island were diverted to this route, and making it the first and only Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel bus route with Tsuen Wan District as its terminus.[Remarks 1]
On 8 August 2022, LWB Route E43 was diverted to run between North District and Tung Chung via this Tunnel, making it the first route not terminating in the Northwest New Territories to use this Tunnel.
Former Toll Plaza[]
The Chek Lap Kok Tunnel in Tuen Mun was originally designed to have a toll plaza at Tuen Mun Area 46 (near Pillar Point) and a toll plaza was built during the project. Subsequently, the Hong Kong Government announced in the Policy Address in October 2019 and the Executive Council approved the abolition of the toll collection arrangement for the tunnel and the trunk road in April 2020. The toll facilities on the site were then demolished and left vacant. The site was subsequently converted to a bus depot[6][7] between 2020 and 2021 and handed over to KMB for management. The bus depot at the former toll plaza of the TMCLK Tunnel in front of the Tuen Mun-bound interchange, known as "Depot A", was opened on 10 September 2021, while "Depot C" on the Chek Lap Kok-bound side has not yet been opened.[8]
Exit Locations[]
| Road Junctions of Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road= (from north to south) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name of junction | Connecting Road | Remarks |
| Lung Mun Road and Lung Fu Road Roundabout | ||
| Ho Wo Street | Links to Tuen Mun side Tunnel Administration Building, interchange at northbound road (no access for southbound traffic), no access for general traffic | |
| Unnamed Road | Access to Ho Yat Street and Tuen Mun side Tunnel Administration Building, interchange at southbound road (no access for northbound traffic), no access for general traffic | |
| Tunnel Tube (spanning the Urmston Road) | ||
| Unnamed Road | Access to Lantau side Tunnel Auxiliary Administration Building, not accessible to general traffic | |
| Chek Lap Kok Road(with slip roads leading to the HZMB Hong Kong Port Passenger Clearance Building (Shun Fai Road) and the Vehicule Clearance Plaza, the latter being the closed road area), Shun Long Road | ||
Routes observed[]
| List of Franchised Bus Routes observing Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operator | Route No. | Origin | Destination | Service Type |
| LWB | A33 | Tuen Mun Road BBI | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, via Tuen Mun Pier Head, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Tuen Mun Road BBI | |||
| LWB | A33X | Tuen Mun (Fu Tai) | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Tuen Mun (Fu Tai) | |||
| LWB | A34 | Hung Shui Kiu (Hung Yuen Road) | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Outbound service daily, via Leung Tin ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Hung Shui Kiu (Hung Yuen Road) | Inbound service daily after Morning Peak Hours, via Leung Tin ● | ||
| LWB | A36 | Kam Sheung Road Station | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Kam Sheung Road Station | |||
| LWB | A37 | Long Ping Station | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Outbound service daily, via Tin Shui Wai ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Long Ping Station | Inbound service daily after Morning Peak Hours, via Tin Shui Wai ● | ||
| LWB | E33 | Tuen Mun Central | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Tuen Mun Central | |||
| LWB | E33P | Siu Hong Station (South) | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Outbound service daily daytime ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Siu Hong Station (South) | Inbound service daily during afternoon to nighttime ● | ||
| LWB | E36 | Pat Heung Road | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Pat Heung Road | |||
| LWB | E36A | Tung Chung (Yat Tung Estate) | Yuen Long (Tak Yip Street) | Outbound service Mondays to Fridays whole-day, Saturdays and holidays during morning to nighttime, via Tuen Mun Town Centre and Tin Yiu Estate ● |
| Yuen Long (Tak Yip Street) | Tung Chung (Yat Tung Estate) | Inbound service daily, via Tuen Mun Town Centre and Tin Yiu Estate ● | ||
| LWB | E37 | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Service daily, observes this stop in both directions ● |
| Airport (Ground Transportation Centre) | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | |||
| LWB | E37C | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | Aircraft Maintenance Area | Outbound service Mondays to Fridays during early morning, via Tuen Mun Central and On Yau ● |
| Aircraft Maintenance Area | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | Inbound service Mondays to Fridays during Afternoon Peak Hours hours to nighttime, via Tuen Mun Central and On Yau ● | ||
| LWB | E43 | Fanling (Wah Ming) | Tung Chung Development Pier | Outbound service Mondays to Fridays during Morning Peak Hours ● |
| Tung Chung Development Pier | Fanling (Wah Ming) | Inbound service Mondays to Fridays during Afternoon Peak Hours ● | ||
| LWB | N30 | Yuen Long Station | Airport (Cheong Tat Road) | Outbound service daily during early morning, via Tin Shui Wai and Tuen Mun ● |
| Airport (Cheong Tat Road) | Yuen Long Station | Inbound service daily overnight, via Tin Shui Wai and Tuen Mun ● | ||
| LWB | NA33 | Tuen Mun (Fu Tai) | Cathay Pacific City | Outbound service daily during early morning ● |
| Cathay Pacific City | Tuen Mun (Fu Tai) | Inbound service daily overnight ● | ||
| LWB | NA36 | Kam Sheung Road Station | Cathay Pacific City | Outbound service daily during early morning, via Tuen Mun Central ● |
| Cathay Pacific City | Kam Sheung Road Station | Inbound service daily overnight, via Tuen Mun Central ● | ||
| LWB | NA37 | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | Cathay Pacific City | Outbound service daily during early morning ● |
| Cathay Pacific City | Tin Shui Wai Town Centre | Inbound service daily overnight ● | ||
| LWB | R33 | Tuen Mun Station | Disneyland | Outbound service Mondays to Fridays during morning, Saturdays and holidays during morning to noon ● |
| Disneyland | Tuen Mun Station | Inbound service daily PM peak and night time during Disneyland open days ● | ||
Related Incidents[]
- 28 June 2021: While the Black Rainstorm Warning Signal was issued by the Hong Kong Observatory, the tunnel tube towards Tuen Mun was flooded and had to be closed for a while, the first time since the tunnel was opened to traffic.
Gallery[]
Tunnel entrances[]
Tunnel tube[]
Other[]
Related Data Archives[]
Remarks[]
Related Articles[]
- Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel BBI
- Shun Long Road
- North Lantau Highway
- Franchised Bus Route Adjustments to tie in with the opening of the northern link of the Tuen Mun - Chek Lap Kok Link
References[]
- ↑ LCQ18: Tuen Mun - Chek Lap Kok Link and Tuen Mun Western Bypass, 23 November 2016
- ↑ G.N. 6474, STREET NAME, HKSAR Government Gazette, Vol. 24, No. 45, 6 November 2020.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "Traffic and Transport Arrangements for Commissioning of Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel Road" [Announcement], 21 December 2020.
- ↑ ABC Touring Car Co Ltd., "慶祝屯門赤鱲角隧道於12月27日開通" (Celebrating the opening of TMCLK Tunnel on 27 December 2020) [Facebook Post], 25 December 2020.
- ↑ CE officiates at new link's opening, news.gov.hk, 26 December 2020.
- ↑ 政府豁免4條隧道及幹線收費 每年額外支出逾6億港元 (Government waives tolls on four tunnels and trunk routes at an additional cost of over HK$600 million per year), on.cc, 15 April 2020.
- ↑ "[報刊新聞] 屯赤隧道收費廣場將改為興建巴士廠" ([Newspaper reports] TMCLK Tunnel Toll Plaza to be redeveloped as bus depot), hkitalk.net.
- ↑ [即日快報] 屯赤隧道原收費廣場 九巴新車廠「A廠」啟用 ([Today's reports] New KMB depot "A depot" opened on former TMCLK Tunnel Toll Plaza), hkitalk.net.
External Links[]
- TM-CLKL Project Website
- Highways Department - Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong related projects - Tuen Mun - Chek Lap Kok Link
- Transport Department - Tuen Mun - Chek Lap Kok Tunnel
Tuen Mun-Chek Lap Kok Tunnel, TMCLK Tunnel, Tuen Chek Tunnel, Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel and TMCLKT
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