New Kau Sai San Tsuen Pier opens

_{The new Kau Sai Tsuen Pier, Sai Kung Photos: Development Bureau}

Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn on Sunday said the renovation of the public pier at Kau Sai San Tsuen in Sai Kung has been completed and it opened for use on 21 September, while also noting that improvement works at 10 other piers are expected to be completed by 2026.

The rebuilt pier in the Hebe Haven area of Sai Kung is part of a programme rolled out by the bureau in 2017 to make 23 public piers in remote areas of the New Territories and the outlying islands more accessible and convenient for tourists and residents.

The development minister said construction work for eight other piers is expected to be completed between the end of this year and 2025, while two more are scheduled for completion in 2026.

She said the remaining piers covered by the project are still in the planning and design stage.

In view of the problems faced by the old pier, such as insufficient berth depth and small wharf area, which cannot cope with the high demand for wharf usage during holidays or festivals, the rebuilt new wharf has improved the berth depth and has three more berths, one of which has a ramp so it is more convenient for passengers to get on and off.

The new terminal also provides a variety of supporting facilities, including roofs, seats, drinking fountains, charging facilities, Wi-Fi and electronic displays. In terms of design, in order to match the historical characteristics of the fishing village, the designers used sailboat patterns on the railings to represent fishing operations and the fisher families who made boats their home. They also worked with villagers to add colourful paintings on the electrical service boxes to depict the villagers’ respect for their village.

The blog also pointed out that the new pier fully considers environmental protection and sustainable development elements, makes good use of natural light and environmentally friendly materials, and uses tempered glass and environmentally friendly wooden strips to build the pier upper cover. Solar power panels are also installed on the upper cover, and the lighting system of the pier will automatically adjust the brightness according to different times to save energy.

In addition, considering that the pier is located in the Hong Kong Geopark and adjacent to the fish breeding area, during the construction period, in addition to taking environmental impact mitigation measures, the government also used a large number of prefabricated components to build the concrete and steel structure of the pier, which shortened the construction period of the main structure of the pier. , and reduce the impact of on-site construction on the environment and ecology, while preventing the project progress from being affected by factors such as the rise and fall of tides, and improving project quality and safety.