The Mass Transit Railway Corporation has agreed to offer fare adjustment concessions to speed up the passage of the rail merger bill, Secretary for the Environment, Transport & Works Dr Sarah Liao says.

She told legislators today the MTRC has agreed to defer the two-year moratorium on fare increases from April 2008 to June 2009. In addition, it will halve the subsequent fare-adjustment rate for individual routes to 5%.

She said the merge will benefit commuters immediately as fares will fall the day Hong Kong's two railways merge. The future fare adjustment process will be more objective, transparent, and the adjustment will be linked directly to the consumer price and wage indexes. She said it is a major improvement to the existing arrangement whereby the railway corporations have fare autonomy.

On the Sha Tin-Central Link, Dr Liao said the Government will form a timetable and a concrete plan for the project six months after the merger.

Noting all these concessions address public concern, Dr Liao urged that the bill be passed as soon as possible.