Central needs upgrades to foster better connectivity for both people and cars, even as Admiralty takes over as leading hub
- The city’s historic business hub needs a new urban plan to improve pedestrian movement and connectivity, while also making road improvements to accommodate rising automobile ownership
- Hong Kong’s main business hub is shifting towards Admiralty as new infrastructure works are completed
During Hong Kong’s early colonial period, Central was the centre of the city’s administration. One of the lasting legacies of 150 years of British rule is that Central remains Hong Kong’s financial hub, containing not only the headquarters of all the city’s leading banks, but also its financial regulatory authorities – the Monetary Authority, the Securities and Futures Commission and the Hong Kong stock exchange.
But all cities change over time. Following completion of the Shatin-Central Link Phase II, by 2021, and the North Island Line by 2026, the Admiralty/Tamar area near Central will become Hong Kong’s largest metro hub and a much more prominent office node.
This increase in rail connectivity will be followed by the completion of a major new pedestrian footbridge and tunnel system linking new commercial buildings, like Hutchinson House, Murray Road Car Park, Queensway Plaza, Queensway Government Offices and the High Court Building, along with a new extension to the Pacific Place complex. This will inevitably mean that Admiralty and Tamar will share more of the central business district role presently enjoyed exclusively by Central.
All of this adds to the pressure on Central to reinvent itself – not merely as the city’s leading financial district, but also as an area which is more oriented towards leisure-based consumption.
The revitalisation of Central is easier said than done. Firstly, Hong Kong is an enormously car-centric city. Automobile ownership has grown 40 per cent over the last decade, making for even greater automotive penetration of Central.
