 放大圖片
■青嶼幹線由青馬大橋、汲水門大橋和馬灣高架道路組成，是往來大嶼山和市區的必經之路。 資料圖片
赤鱲角機場已啟用超過17年，但一直以來從市區通往機場及大嶼山的陸路交通，只有唯一一條青嶼幹線。而處於這條幹線上的汲水門大橋，上月因被船隻意外撞擊而造成橋底損毀，光纖斷裂，被迫封閉兩小時進行工程檢查，導致出入市區和大嶼山的公路和鐵路交通瞬間癱瘓，包括機鐵在內的所有陸路交通工具一律無法來往機場至市區，大量趕往機場的旅客不是被擁堵在路上，就是根本「無車可乘」，部分人甚至因此錯過航班。
當局必須從交通癱瘓事件中汲取教訓，盡快打破機場地區「自古華山一條路」的困局，興建連接機場的替代通道，同時推進交通配套體系向多樣化方向發展。這樣可在面對突發事故時，起到分散擁堵風險，疏導人潮的作用，避免類似交通癱瘓事件再次發生。
特區政府不同的職能部門之間，更應該建立協調機制，共同合作令事故的負面效應降到最低。（文匯報社評 26-10-2015）
Round out ancillary structures for airport transport
The Hong Kong International Airport has been in use for 17 years, but the Lantau Link is still the only land route between the airport, Lantau Island and the downtown areas. But after the Kap Shui Mun Bridge, a part of the Lantau Link, was accidentally collided by a vessel earlier, resulting in damage of optical fibres and the lower parts of it, all road and rail traffic connecting Lantau and the downtown areas paralysed instantly and the bridge was forced to close off two hours for inspection. Due to the suspension of all land transport services between the airport and the city, including the Airport Express, numerous passengers were either deprived of land options or left stranded on their way to the airport, and some even missed their flights.
The authority must draw experience from the incident and put an end to the current awkward situation of having only one land route to the island. Another direct link to the airport is necessary and ancillary transport facilities must be diversified, so as to facilitate transport flow and minimise the risk of chaos when similar incidents hit.
More importantly, inter-departmental coordination in the government should be enhanced to improve communication, minimizing the impact of future incidents.
Learning Point
本文以社會政策為主題，焦點轉至上月發生的汲水門大橋意外。讀者可以此機會，了解香港公共交通的一些日常英語字詞。
Exercise
1. 應變
2. 溝通
3. 控制
4. 連接
5. 機管局
6. 運輸署
7. 海事處
8. 海上巡邏
9. 行政失當
10. 有關公眾利益
Answers
1. Contingency
2. Communication
3. Control
4. Connectivity
5. The Airport Authority
6. Transport Department
7. Marine Department
8. Sea/ marine patrols
9. Maladministration
10. Of public interest and concern
■Jeffrey Tse [ywc_jeffrey@hotmail.com]
隔星期三見報
|
放大圖片
