The Transport Department on Thursday said diagonal crossings would not be a standard feature at all junctions across Hong Kong, citing a need for careful assessments of the impact on traffic as a result of any such move.

This came after Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mable Chan unveiled a transport strategy blueprint last Friday that would see diagonal crossings enabled at 15 junctions from this year — with the aim to make things easier for pedestrians.

Speaking on RTHK's Backchat programme on Thursday, the Transport Department's chief engineer of traffic control, Gordon Kwok, said the implementation of diagonal crossings is highly location specific and should be assessed on a case-by-case basis, regardless of whether it is in a commercial or a residential area.

"Since the distance for diagonal crossings is longer than that of the conventional crossings, the implementation of diagonal crossing would require an expansion of pedestrian green time and a corresponding reduction of the vehicle green time," he said.

"We need a careful evaluation of the impact of diagonal crossings on the road capacity and surrounding traffic on a case-by-case basis," he said, stressing that diagonal crossings would not be a standard provision.

Kwok said the department is currently developing design standards and guidelines on diagonal crossings for wider application at suitable junctions in new development areas and existing districts.

He hoped that with the new design standards and guidelines, more suitable junctions could be identified and further suggestions proposed by the public could be assessed in the future.

The time it takes to enable diagonal road crossings at an intersection, he said, depends on how spread out it is, as well as if there are any existing road works.

Transport officials are working closely with other departments on the planning and design for these new crossings.