The Government will substantially reduce tolls when it takes over the Tai Lam Tunnel (TLT) at 0.00am on Saturday.

In addition, the HKeToll free-flow tolling service will begin from 5am on the same day.

Outlining the takeover arrangements today, the Transport Department said that the TLT will briefly cease operating for five minutes at 0.00am on May 31 to facilitate the updating of toll collection facilities. Thereafter, manual or Autotoll toll collections will be in operation until 3am.

From 3am to 5am, the tunnel will be fully closed for switchover works. It will reopen at 5am, when motorists can start using HKeToll without having to stop or queue to make payments.

As May 31 falls on a public holiday, fixed tolls will be applied throughout the day for private cars and motorcycles, of $18 and $7.2 respectively. The same fees also apply on Sundays.

Starting from June 2, tolls for private cars during the peak, normal and off-peak time slots from Monday to Saturday will be $45, $30 and $18 respectively.

For motorcycles, the toll for all time slots is set at 40% of the private car toll, which is between $7.2 and $18.

Taxis and other commercial vehicles, such as goods vehicles and buses, will continue to have a fixed toll on all days, set at $28 for taxis and $43 for other commercial vehicles.

The new tolls for all vehicle types will be lower than the existing tolls by between 22% and 80%, the department highlighted.

To facilitate the launch of HKeToll, temporary traffic and transport arrangements will take place in phases in the tunnel vicinity from 1am on May 31, with the tunnel and all slip road entrances being fully closed from 3am to 5am. Motorists should opt for Tuen Mun Road during the full closure.

During the tunnel’s temporary closure, the bus stops at the toll plaza will be suspended. As a result, three overnight bus routes – namely KMB Route Nos. N269 and N368, and Long Win Bus Route No. NA43 – will be diverted via Yuen Long Highway and Tuen Mun Road. Temporary bus stops will be set up at the “Tuen Mun Road Bus-Bus Interchange”.