Lion Rock Tunnel
|
Entrance of the Second Lion Rock Tunnel |
The
Lion Rock Tunnel () is a twin-bored toll tunnel in
Hong Kong, connecting
Sha Tin in the
New Territories and
New Kowloon near
Kowloon Tong. It has two lanes in each direction, with toll booths located at the Sha Tin end. It is a vital component of
Route 1.
The Lion Rock Tunnel was opened on
November 14,
1967, as a 1.43 km dual-one single bore tunnel. The conception of this tunnel is often described as a by-product, as there was a need at that time to build a water supply tunnel through the range of hills separating
New Kowloon and the rest of the
New Territories, as part of the
Plover Cove scheme.
The government later saw the need for another road link between
New Kowloon and
Sha Tin when it decided to develop the latter as a new town. The
Second Lion Rock Tunnel, which is 1.41 km long and situated to the west of, and lying parallel to, the old tunnel, was opened to traffic on
January 18,
1978.
The new tunnel serves northbound traffic towards Sha Tin, while the old one serves southbound traffic towards Kowloon. Traffic in both directions share one of the tunnels when the other undergoes maintenance works.
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Transportation in Hong Kong*
Roads in the New Territories
