Mr Tsang was killed on the road beneath a pedestrian bridge in Sham Shui Po

A man was killed crossing a road on the edge of the government’s “Walkable Urban Area” pilot area in Sham Shui Po yesterday, highlighting issues with the government’s “pedestrian infrastructure” approach to road safety.

Mr Tsang, 87, was crossing Shek Kip Mei Street underneath a raised pedestrian bridge at 12.54pm, when a truck, driven by Mr Lo, 45, swung into the street from Woh Chai Street eastbound and knocked Tsang down. Emergency crews rushed Tsang to Caritas Medical Centre unconscious, declaring him dead just 15 minutes after the crash.

Police arrested truck driver Lo for dangerous driving causing death, and are still detaining him this morning.

The crash occurred on the border of one of Hong Kong’s two “walkability pilot zones” under Walk Hong Kong, with eight enhancement schemes proposed in Sham Shui Po to make the area more walkable. Further to its Walk Hong Kong ambitions, the government recently proposed to kickstart stalled walkability infrastructure projects with a new 90-strong team in Highways Department focused on getting infrastructure built.

But a Hong Kong walkability expert says issues with pedestrian bridge crossings are well known. “These bridges are not really pedestrian friendly, but of course Transport and Highways Departments love them because they keep the roads clear for cars,” they said, asking not to be named.

Neither Transport Department’s walkability engineers nor the government’s walkability consultants Mott McDonald answered or returned calls.