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5.Lantau Development

As this Report has reiterated, Hong Kong has not witnessed the
completion of any large-scale land development project for well over a
decade. Looking ahead, the next large-scale land development project
with an immense strategic value to be completed in the city would be
the development of Lantau Island. As such, this Chapter presents our
view on the Lantau Development and discusses some important aspects
surrounding the project, with several policy recommendations.

5.1 Background

Following the successful completion of the “Hong Kong Airport Core
Programme” during which the Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA), Tsing
Ma Bridge, North Lantau Highway, and Tung Chung New Town were built,
Lantau is presented with its next development opportunity to become the
intersection point between Hong Kong, Macau, and the Pearl River Delta
(PRD). With the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HKZMB)
and the Tuen Mun – Chek Lap Kok Link (TM-CLKL), it will put most of the
cities in the Pearl River Delta within a three-hour commute radius of Hong
Kong.

5.2 Overall recommendations

Regarding the Lantau Development, we put forth 5 recommendations as
follows:
1. Prioritising transportation in urban development: The efficiency of
transportation system is instrumental to the success of new town
development. To avoid the past planning mistakes, improving existing
transportation network to cater for future needs should be at the top of
the development agenda;

2. Balancing the different aspirations in different regions: The government
should examine the development constraints and needs, and tailor
various development strategies for different regions of Lantau Island;

Maximising the “clustering effect”: Lantau should be established as a
3. world-class “showcase” under the planning concept of an “Aerotropolis”,
such that a complementary economic ecosystem incorporating
different regions could be formulated, propelling Lantau into a smart

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