Archive:Hong Kong Mass Transport Study/Chapter 3

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Chapter 2 — Existing Public Transport

Hong Kong Mass Transport Study, Chapter 3 Forms of Public Transport

Chapter 4 — Planning Characteristics and Projections

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FORMS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT

1. In recent years there has been a worldwide revival of interest in improved mass transportation. This renewed emphasis has brought about the design of new systems and accelerated the expansion of some of those already in existence. As a result, many new ideas are now available for review and evaluation.
2. To ensure the development of a sound transportation plan for Hong Kong, existing and developing rapid-transit systems in key cities of the world were studied afresh. In addition to developing an understanding of these specific systems and studying their operating advantages and disadvantages, available information on new equipment and new concepts was collected and analysed in relation to the specific transport demands of Hong Kong. The purpose was objectively to determine the form best suited to the Colony's overall needs.

KEY CONSIDERATIONS IN SYSTEM CHOICE

3. The projected transport potentials of Hong Kong will require facilities having exceedingly high capacity. The capacity of different transport systems is quite varied. Private cars on conventional city streets can move only about 1,200 people per traffic lane per hour with normal occupancy, whereas on limited access motorways they can move up to 3,000 people per lane per hour. Buses and trams operating on city streets in Hong Kong serve about 7,500 people per lane in the peak hour. But, by contrast, rail rapid transit produces a significantly greater capacity. Operating volumes up to 40,000 passengers per hour on a single track are not uncommon and theoretical capacities exceed 60,000.
4. The basic equipment must be fully reliable so that efficient operation can be maintained at all times. Equipment and controls should have been well proven and should conform to high standards of design and manufacture.
5. Comfort, patron amenities and other basic requirements apply equally to the rolling stock, travel ways and stations. Desirable operating characteristics of the equipment include high top speed, high acceleration and deceleration rates, provision for fast loading and unloading and automatic controls.
6. To attract maximum usage, a system should be aesthetically pleasing, quiet and smooth. Good interior design, and adequate lighting, ventilation and temperature control are important. In most mass transport Operations a high percentage of peak period passengers are accommodated standing, and the same will apply in Hong Kong. A careful balance must therefore be struck between seating and standing space in the cars, and adequate hand-holds provided. Access to, doors must be good and distances between them short.
7. Another important consideration is the ability of a system to accommodate growth and expansion, with minimum disruption during different stages of development. To help achieve this, special attention must be given to the design of interchange points and terminal facilities. These areas must also be attractive and functional and have excellent operating characteristics.
8. It became apparent early in the investigations that the existing transportation facilities must be supplemented by a high-capacity transit system. In effect, this means that the Colony's future public transport should comprise surface transportation by buses (and possibly trams), ferries, and the existing railway, and a new form of high-capacity transport which will be the main framework of the total system.

EXISTING SYSTEMS

9. The following paragraphs summarise the principal aspects of several operating systems.
10. Dual-rail Steel-wheel Systems — Systems comprising steel-wheeled vehicles running on steel rails dominate the urban rapid-transit field—both those now in use and those under development. Although many of these systems were constructed years ago, nearly all the recently designed systems (Kiev, Milan, Nagoya, Rotterdam, Toronto and San Francisco) have also adopted the steel-on-steel system after careful consideration of all suitable alternatives.
11. With the revival of interest in public transport in recent years, more than a dozen cities have developed significant extensions to their existing mass transport systems. These, too, have almost invariably involved the extension of the dual-rail, steel-on-steel type. The steel-wheel urban transit train has not only continued to be popular and efficient; through massive worldwide technological and operational progress due to continued use, it can today offer a quality of service better than ever before. Longer, wider, lighter and more powerful cars have been produced or are now in development. Improved types of motive power have been applied. Wider-than-standard track gauges have occasionally been adopted.
12. Many new automatic train control systems are improving the operating efficiency and safety, as well as reducing operating costs. Better acceleration and deceleration capabilities permit higher operating capacities. Much has been done to produce quieter and smoother cars and tracks. Car interiors are more attractive and comfortable; high quality lighting, ventilation and air conditioning have become commonplace. The end result is a vast improvement in total attractiveness and overall efficiency.
13. Dual-rail Rubber-tyred Systems — There have been two significant transit installations involving the operation of rubber-tyred wheels on dual rails. One of these is a part of the Paris Metro system, which uses conventional car bodies mounted on pneumatic rubber-tyred wheels, in addition, horizontally mounted rubber-tyred wheels operate against side rails (which also act as conductor rails) for guidance. In the recently completed rapid transit in Montreal a similar system has been adopted.

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Figure 10 — Comparison of Steel-wheel and Rubber-tyre Rapid Transit

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Figure 11 — Suspended and Over-riding Monorail

14. Figure 10 shows a section view of the Paris Metro type car and tracks. The rubber-tyred main wheels run on smooth flat-topped wood or concrete "ways". There are separate side guidance "rails" for normal running. In addition conventional steel rails have to be laid throughout to provide switching facilities and to carry the train in the event of tyre failure, and corresponding flanged wheels have of course to be provided.
15. The use of pneumatic tyres imposes a significant economic restriction on the weight and size of the cars. Even the relatively small cars in use in Paris and Montreal require expensive light-weight construction to keep the tyre pressure at a safe value. Although rubber tyres have better adhesion on dry track, this advantage is largely lost on above-ground routes unprotected from the weather.
16. With twelve wheels, eight of them rubber-tyred, on each bogie, and with the need for all driving axles to incorporate differential gears (the rubber-tyred wheels will not negotiate curves smoothly on solid axles), the mechanical equipment of these cars is expensive to buy and to maintain. Power consumption is also higher, weight for weight. With all these complications, the cost of trains of equivalent capacity would be nearly double that of the conventional type. The noise level inside trains in tunnel is not strikingly reduced.
17. Monorail Systems — Monorail systems have been developed in both suspended and over-riding types. The suspended types can be either symmetrically or asymmetrically supported. All modern installations make use of several running surfaces on which vertical tyres serve as drive wheels while horizontal tyres guide and stabilize the cars. Figure 11 shows section views of two types of monorail.
18. Much publicity has been given to monorail systems and, as a result, there is much interest in them. Currently, there are approximately 15 monorail installations in operation or in development stages. However, the combined length of these installations is only about 30 miles, and most of them are experimental or demonstration projects.
19. The original commercial monorail, built in Wuppertal, Germany, in 1903 is of the suspended type, 8.5 miles long and still in regular service. In 1964, an over-riding monorail 8.2 miles in length was installed between the Tokyo International Airport and a point about 2 miles from the city centre. It opened in September 1964, primarily to serve visitors to the Olympic games. In comparison, all the other existing monorail lines are very short.
20. While much research and development has been undertaken with this type of transport facility, there appear to remain problems of stability and switching. The use of rubber tyres results in the limitations and extra costs associated with dual-rail rubber-tyred systems but with even greater effect because of the narrow effective track base. There have been no demonstrations of appreciable costs savings with monorail in relation to the more conventional dual-rail form. This form of transport is not readily adaptable to underground operations and, therefore, raises problems of both costs and aesthetics in highly developed urban areas.
21. Bus or Tram Rapid Transit — It is often suggested that the speed and capacity characteristics of railway rapid transit can be obtained, or approached, by buses or trams operating on exclusive rights of way for either all, or parts, of a system. Obviously, such systems will be effective only to the extent that their routes or tracks are separated from the general road network so that the two traffic systems can operate independently of one another.
22. In some European cities, tram lines are located partly in exclusive reservations and combine with underground operations in congested central areas. To a certain extent this produces characteristics having some resemblance to a modest rail rapid-transit system. However, unless a city has an extensive number of trams already operating largely on separate rights of way, it becomes generally uneconomical to develop such a system.
23. While much has been said about express operations of buses, the actual examples of successes are few. There are special cases, such as the exclusive bus ramps in New York City's bus terminal, where very high capacities are achieved. But there are few cases in which sustained heavy movements of persons are being achieved by buses over useful distances.
24. Much attention has also been given to the possibility of providing high capacity transit service by running buses on urban motorways. Under most of these plans, however, the buses are intermingled with the other vehicles, thereby becoming subject to the same problems of congestion and delay during peak hours.
25. Some interesting experiments are currently under way whereby peak-hour volumes of vehicles on urban motorways can be automatically regulated, thus allowing the facilities to function at normal, off-peak speeds. If buses were given priority in the use of such controlled roads, many of the difficulties now experienced in providing attractive express-bus services on motorways would be overcome. However, a first essential requirement in such a plan would be an extensive system of motorways. Very little attention has been given to the development of exclusive lanes for buses on motorways or other major roadways, even during peak hours, or to the provision of completely separate overhead or underground busways. The cost involved in such plans would be great, and many problems would arise in providing loading and transfer facilities.
26. Moreover, since buses in their present concept must be guided by a driver rather than a rail, operating costs are high and potential capacities are low when compared to train systems. If conventionally engined buses were operated underground, extensive ventilation systems, costly to provide and to run, would have to be provided. While such technological problems can be overcome, no examples of successful bus operations in subways are known.
27. High-speed Water Transport — Various types of high-speed water vehicles have been proposed for mass transport in cities with numerous waterways. It is logical, therefore, that such systems should be considered for Hong Kong. These vehicles usually take the form of hydrofoil or air-cushioned (hovercraft) machines. While such water-borne vehicles might have applications in some special cases, it does not appear that they can be broadly applied. Lack of rapid acceleration, capacity, interference by and with other water traffic, visibility and interchange with ground transport are among the problems.

SYSTEMS PROPOSED OR UNDER DEVELOPMENT

28. The current technology of transportation equipment is producing many new and challenging ideas for tomorrow's transport networks. These include the use of computers, and involve intricate plans of operations and service levels not heretofore produced. Undoubtedly there will be many radical changes in transportation system techniques in the coming decades.
29. Significantly, many of the major manufacturing and research agencies of the world are turning their attention to the development of new and improved forms of public transport. Most of these are still under test, or in various forms of development. No attempt was made to ascertain the details of all such plans, but some of those most often referred to include:

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Figure 12 — Transit Expressway

30. New Type Rubber-tyred Systems — A system currently on trial in Pittsburgh employs small lightweight cars capable of operating in a fully-automated system, either singly or in trains. The cars resemble motor buses, and run on rubber tyres on a concrete trackway. They also have horizontal wheels to provide guidance. A section view of a car and the track is shown in Figure 12. While the operation has been reported as highly successful, the system has not yet been installed as a segment of a planned urban transport system. It is reported, however, that serious consideration is being given to its installation by the City of Pittsburgh to serve its rapid-transit needs.
31. Moving Belt Systems — The transport of persons in large numbers by various types of moving platform or belt has been widely considered, and has been applied in special cases such as the 315 foot long "travelator" at Bank station in the City of London (installed 1960) and at some airport terminal buildings. One for passenger transport was designed in New York as early as 1874. Some current proposals for these systems for passenger service take the form of small cars travelling on belts or rollers in constant motion.
32. The "carveyor" system, designed as a city centre distribution facility, is an elevated beltway with cars that decelerate to approximately walking speed as they approach stations and then accelerate again to 15 or 20 miles per hour. The station platform is a belt moving at the same low speed as the station speed of the cars to facilitate loading and unloading. This system might in theory have relatively high capacity and overall speed since it never comes to a complete stop, though it seems most unlikely to be a serious competitor of conventional rail systems for traffic on a scale that Hong Kong will produce. With station platforms moving at say two miles per hour, passengers would have great difficulty while waiting for a space in a car at times when most of the cars were filled to capacity. They would have to keep "on the move" all the time. This factor could be hazardous for cripples and people with slow reactions. No systems of this type are known to be currently in operation.
33. Ground Effect Vehicles — Among the novel transport methods are the ground effect (hovercraft) vehicles. Experiments are under way with a hovercraft vehicle operating in a concrete guideway and powered by linear-induction motors. This shows promise as a form of inter-urban transport, but the acceleration and switching characteristics are not suited for short urban journeys. Also, as currently known, this method requires excessive power in relation to other forms and, unless linear electric motive power is used, would be quite noisy.
34. On-call Vehicles — In an effort to develop a high level of convenience, some companies have announced plans for developing a fully automated system whereby an urban traveller would be able to place a call for a small vehicle and then use the vehicle in a single or complex network to make a desired trip. Some of these proposals are for a bi-modal vehicle; one which can be hand-guided and can also be operated on a tracked or indirectly guided system. Such systems could meet the demands of individuals for personalized forms of transport, and might conceivably move people in mass transport orders of numbers in dense areas; but they have not yet progressed beyond the experimental stage, and there is no indication that they are likely to approach the capacities considered normal for conventional rapid-transit systems.
35. Other Schemes — More ideas have been advanced and undoubtedly others will develop in the future. These include such things as vehicles or capsules in pneumatic tubes, various forms of airborne conveyances including jet packs for individuals, and new types of vehicle propulsion. None of them appear to be advanced to a state worthy of consideration in relation to Hong Kong's needs.
36. Station Operation — Applications of modern technology are not limited to the potentials of train automation. Much thought is also being given to the automation of station operations. Information now available suggests that this approach does not have immediate application in Hong Kong. Whilst the most modern methods of fare collection and record keeping would be applied, full automation of stations would appear to be premature.

CONCLUSION

37. Study and evaluation of many existing public transport systems, and of available information on systems now under construction or in final planning, have led to the conclusion that the basic requirements for rapid transit in Hong Kong can best be met by a system which uses steel-wheeled cars operating on steel rails.
38. If the flanged steel wheel had been invented after the monorail and other rubber-tyred systems instead of a century before, it would have been hailed as the greatest single technical advance in railway history, because it alone safely and simply solves the triple problems of steering the train; of working long trains at reasonable speeds through switches (thereby enormously increasing the capacity of junctions and reversing terminals); and of reliable track circuiting of low voltage current controlling the signalling system and safety of trains.
39. By taking advantage of all the new techniques available such a railway will be as attractive as regards passenger amenities as any other that could be devised, and will be the cheapest to construct and to operate. It has the additional merit of being a well-tried system in which the improvements suggested are based on experience, and will be attainable without loss of reliability—perhaps the most important single factor in any scheme to handle mass transport of people.
40. It must however be recognised that the transport demands of Hong Kong cannot be satisfied by any single transport mode. As indicated throughout this report, a balanced plan must be developed, combining the different travel modes and functioning as a completely integrated whole. It must further include integration with vehicular terminals and facilities for pedestrian travel. The recommended system of rail transit will meet these important needs, and will feature the capability of coordination with other travel modes to provide the most efficient total transportation system.