- Kai Tak Tunnel
Kai Tak Tunnel (zh-tspcy|t=啟德隧道|s=启德隧道|p=Qǐdé Suìdào|cy=kai2 dak1 seui6 dou6), formerly known as the Airport Tunnel (機場隧道) is a tunnel in
New Kowloon ,Hong Kong , which connects theKowloon Bay andTo Kwa Wan areas by going beneath the former Hong Kong International Airport (Kai Tak Airport). It is part of Route 5. It provides a quick link between the two ends of the tunnel, as before the construction of the tunnel vehicles have to detour throughKowloon City to reach the other end. [Hong Kong - Streets and Districts (香港街道與地區) (1978), Lands Department, HKSAR.] Hong Kong Yearbook 1999, HKSAR.]Construction of the tunnel started in
1976 , but because of the difficulties in digging under the airport runway, it was not complete until1982 . It was known as Kowloon Bay Tunnel (九龍灣隧道) at the time of its opening, and it was also the first tunnel in Hong Kong to be toll-free.The tunnel consists of a pair of tubes of about 7m diameter each, 1.26 km long. The southern tube carries west-bound traffic from Kowloon Bay to
Ma Tau Kok . A point of interest is that the eastbound tunnel branches off ontoSung Wong Toi Road . It is the only major vehicular tunnel in Hong Kong built by thecut-and-cover technique.Many major express bus routes of
Kowloon Motor Bus between Kowloon and the eastern end of New Kowloon travel through the Airport Tunnel. Most of them run between theKwun Tong District andTsim Sha Tsui . They include 13X, 98D, 98P, 215X, 219P, 219X, 296D. Westbound departures of routes 11X and 28 also run through Kai Tak Tunnel. In total, an estimated 60000 vehicles use the tunnel each day.Hong Kong Guide 2006, Survey and Mapping Office, HKSAR.]With
Kai Tak Airport 's shutdown in 1998, the Airport Tunnel no longer fulfilled its name. The Hong Kong Government announced onMarch 2 ,2006 that the tunnel be renamed to Kai Tak Tunnel, effective fromMay 4 ,2006 , after several years of consultation with groups including theKowloon City District Council. [ [http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/200603/02/P200603020141.htm Airport Tunnel renamed as Kai Tak Tunnel] - Hong Kong Government press release. Retrieved onMay 29 ,2008 .]References
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