First road tunnel links Shatin with Kowloon

As Hong Kong’s population grew and economic development continued unabated, the Government sought new ways to pump fresh water from Plover Cove in the New Territories to the dynamic manufacturing heart of Kowloon.

Originally conceived as a water tunnel, the project was later extended to include the first road link through the granite mountain separating Kowloon from the New Territories. Using a jumbo tunnelling machine along with 150 tonnes of explosives, the 10.5 metre diameter tunnel was completed in 1964.

As the first road tunnel linking Kowloon and Shatin, the route opened a new social and economic lifeline to the far reaches of Hong Kong. Ten years later a second Lion Rock Tunnel was commissioned, a project again awarded to Dragages.