LCQ16: Combating illegal motor racing

     Following is a question by the Hon Lee Chun-keung and a written reply by the Acting Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Mr Liu Chun-san, in the Legislative Council today (July 3):

Question:

     It has been reported that residents living in the vicinity of illegal motor racing black spots have been plagued by the rumble of engines emitted by the motor vehicles over the years. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) whether it will compile statistics on the number of complaints involving illegal motor racing received by the law enforcement agencies concerned in each of the past five years, with a breakdown by the 18 districts across the territory;

(2) of the number of persons arrested by the law enforcement agencies concerned in each of the past five years for allegedly engaging in illegal motor racing and, among them, the number of those convicted;

(3) whether it knows the illegal motor racing black spots in various districts; if so, of the measures currently adopted by the authorities to combat illegal motor racing at such black spots, and whether they have assessed the effectiveness of such measures; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(4) how it will step up efforts to combat illegal motor racing, for example, whether it will make good use of technology to assist in law enforcement and increase the relevant penalties; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?

Reply:

President,

     Having consulted the Hong Kong Police Force (Police) in respect of combating illegal motor racing, my reply to various parts of the question raised by the Hon Lee Chun-keung is as follows:

(1) The number of complaints about illegal motor racing received by the Police in the past five years is set out in the table below:
 

     â€‹The Police does not maintain statistics of complaints about illegal motor racing by district.

(2) The figures for enforcement actions taken by the Police against speeding or illegal motor racing (Note) (including the issuance of fixed penalty tickets, summonses and arrests) by Police Region from 2021 to 2023 is tabulated below:
 

     â€‹The Police does not maintain records of convictions for speeding or illegal motor racing.

Note: In accordance with section 55(1) of the Road Traffic Ordinance (Cap. 374), a person who takes part in a race or trial of speed on any road between vehicles to which the Commissioner of Police has not given his consent in writing, or in contravention of any conditions imposed on the granting of such consent, commits an offence and is liable to a fine at level 3 and to imprisonment for 12 months.

(3) and (4) While the Police does not maintain records of illegal motor racing blackspots, it will take enforcement actions against speeding or illegal motor racing based on complaints and intelligence received, including sentinel enforcement with the use of various types of speed detectors and mobile enforcement with police vehicles equipped with speed detection and automatic number plate recognition systems. In addition, if an intercepted vehicle is suspected to have been illegally altered (including emission of loud noise as a result of illegal alterations), it will be sent to a Police Vehicle Pound for further examination by a Motor Vehicle Examiner. If an offence is proven to have been committed, the Police will initiate prosecution.

     Speeding or illegal motor racing is a very serious traffic offence that poses significant risks to drivers and other road users. Combating speeding or illegal motor racing is one of the Police's Selected Traffic Enforcement Priorities. The Police will continue to launch operations from time to time to take stringent enforcement action against speeding, illegal motor racing as well as other dangerous driving behaviours; and will follow up on the relevant reports promptly in order to combat unsafe and irresponsible driving behaviour of motorists, to ensure the safety of their own as well as other road users.

     Between 2021 and 2023, the number of speeding enforcement cases handled by the Police decreased slightly by 4.8 per cent, while the number of complaints against illegal motor racing decreased by 98 per cent during the same period. The above figures reflect the effectiveness of the Police's enforcement against speeding or illegal motor racing, and that the penalties of the existing legislation maintain their deterrent effect. The Police will continue the relevant enforcement work and keep reviewing the number of offences and related matters.