The Environment, Transport and Works Bureau (ETWB) and the Works Departments will implement the five-day week initiative from July 1, but no emergency services will be affected.
Starting from July 1, the opening hours of the bureau will be from 8.45am to 6pm from Monday to Friday, with a lunch break from 1pm and 2pm.
To cater for people who would like to hand in written documents, such as transport complaints and submissions relating to gazettes under the Railways Ordinance and the Roads (Works, Use and Compensation) Ordinance, on Saturdays, there will be a drop-in box at the ground floor lift lobby of the Murray Building in Central.
Enquiries can be made with the bureau, anytime by email to etwbenq@etwb.gov.hk as at present.
Those wishing to file transport complaints with the Transport Complaints Unit (TCU) of the Transport Advisory Committee, can continue to do so by calling the TCU Hotline, 2889 9999, which has a voicemail service outside office hours or by emailing info@tcu.gov.hk.
Regarding the Works departments under the bureau, the Water Supplies Department's customer telephone hotline, 2824 5000, attendance to water supply fault complaints and other emergency and essential services will continue to be provided on a round-the-clock basis.
The opening hours of water-selling kiosks that supply water for shipping purposes will remain unchanged. Details of the arrangements can be found on the department's website, http://www.wsd.gov.hk/.
The Document Management Centre, which receives applications from licensed plumbers and Authorised Persons will be closed on Saturdays from July 1. The centre will open from 8.45am to 5.30pm on weekdays. Applications can also be made by post, email wsdinfo@wsd.gov.hk, or fax 2802 7333. They may also be put into the department's drop-in box on the ground floor of WSD Headquarters at Immigration Tower, 7 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai.
The department's Customer Enquiry Centres will continue to open on Saturday mornings until January 1, 2007. Details of the arrangements can be found on the department's website, http://www.wsd.gov.hk/.
For the Civil Engineering and Development Department, the counters that receive applications for dumping licences, sand removal permits, and billing accounts and issuing chits under the Construction Waste Disposal Changing Scheme will be closed on Saturdays from July 1. They will operate from 9am to 12.30pm and 1.30pm to 5.15pm on weekdays.
Applications for dumping licences and sand removal permits can also be made by post, fax or email. The email addresses for applications for dumping licences and sand removal permits are dumpinglicence@cedd.gov.hk and sandpermit@cedd.gov.hk respectively. The fax numbers for applications for dumping licences and sand removal permits are 2714 9481 and 2714 0113 respectively.
Hotlines frequently used by the public, such as the drainage complaints hotline, 2300 1110, under the Drainage Services Department, will operate on a 24-hour basis as usual.
The 24-hour operator-managed hotline, 2333 3762, for fault reporting on traffic signals, footbridge and subway lightings under Electrical and Mechanical Services Department will remain unchanged. Enquiries on gas, electricity, lifts and escalators, amusement rides and energy efficiency can be made to the department through the 24-hour Government hotline, 1823.
Ends/Monday, June 19, 2006