Universal Accessibility (UA) Projects

Details of the "Universal Accessibility" (UA) Programme

The Government has been installing barrier-free access facilities at public walkways¹ and launched the “Universal Accessibility” (UA) Programme in August 2012 to proactively provide more barrier-free access facilities (i.e. lifts and ramps) to enhance the convenience of the public in using public walkways.

In order to benefit more people, since the launch of the UA Programme in 2012, the scope of the UA Programme has been expanded with a view to covering more walkways. Initially, the UA programme only covered public walkways maintained by the Highways Department (HyD) which are not equipped with any barrier-free access facilities. Since then, the scope of the UA Programme has been expanded to cover existing public walkways² which already have standard ramps, provided that certain criteria³ are met and no land resumption would be involved to ensure the proper use of public funds.

In response to public demand, the Government announced in 2019 that a Special Scheme would be launched under the UA Programme to retrofit lifts at footbridges, subways and elevated walkways of the following three types of housing estates under the Hong Kong Housing Authority (HA), namely estates under the Tenants Purchase Scheme and the Buy or Rent Option Scheme, and public rental housing estates with properties divested, provided that certain criteria are met⁴.

The Government is pressing ahead with the implementation of a total of 384 items under various phases of the UA Programme. As at 29 February 2024, 202 items were completed and 156 items were under construction. Construction for the remaining 26 items will commence as soon as possible upon completion of detailed design and other related works.

Progress of Various Phases of the UA Programme

Photos of the UA Prorgamme

Elevated walkway connecting Tin Wan Praya Road and Tin Wan Hill Road at Southern District (Structure No. H186)
Footbridge across Island Eastern Corridor near Quarry Bay Park at Eastern District (Structure No. HF92)
Subway across Choi Hung Road at Lok Sin Road at Wong Tin Sin District (Structure No. KS12)

1. They refer to public footbridges, elevated walkways and subways maintained by the Highways Department.
2. They are not confined to public walkways maintained by the HyD.
3. The relevant criteria include -
- (a) the walkways span across public roads maintained by the HyD;
  (b) they are open for public access from public roads at all times;
  (c) the walkways are not privately owned; and
  (d) the parties responsible for the management and maintenance of these walkways agree to such lift retrofitting proposals and are willing to cooperate with the Government during the implementation of the said lift retrofitting works as well as the subsequent management and maintenance works of the lifts.
4. Lift retrofitting items under the Special Scheme could only be taken forward provided that the relevant owner(s) or parties responsible for the management of the concerned land/walkways agree to such lift retrofitting proposals and are willing to cooperate with the Government in subsequent management and maintenance of the lifts, and that no land resumption would be involved.