A transport official on Wednesday reiterated that authorities tried their best to mitigate fare increases that are set to come into effect on April 1 on some outlying island ferry routes.

Fares will go up by 12.5 percent for standard journeys from Central to Cheung Chau, Lamma, and on the inter-island services. Meanwhile, there will be no more ordinary ferry services to and from Mui Wo and Peng Chau, but the price for high-speed ferries will be slightly cheaper than the current rates.

Assistant Commissioner for Transport Louisa Fung said the Transport Department made every effort to balance the financial viability of the ferry services with the interests of residents when vetting the fare increase requests.

“Both ferry service operators have been struggling financially. Setting aside government subsidies under special assistance measures, the six routes would record a loss of approximately 35 percent and 50 percent,” she said.

“We have also noticed that ridership on the six routes has declined in recent years. Given the decrease in revenue coupled with the continuous rise in operating costs, there is a genuine need for fare adjustments to ensure the current service levels remain unchanged."

Fung said the approved increases are lower than the 20 to 30 percent rises requested by the operators.

The assistant commissioner added that prices for multi-ride tickets and monthly passes will see smaller increases of eight percent, adding that this should be more bearable for the residents of the outlying islands.

The double-digit percentage hike overall has drawn criticism from district councillors who warn that some residents, particularly elderly people, will be discouraged from travelling into urban areas.

Fung said the department understands the importance of ferry services to the residents, adding that it asked operators to offer passengers more choices and greater flexibility on multi-trip tickets.



Edited by Thomas McAlinden