Following is a question by the Hon Yiu Si-wing and a written reply by the Secretary for Food and Health, Professor Sophia Chan, in the Legislative Council today (March 28):

Question:

     In reply to a question raised by me on March 22 last year, the Government pointed out that the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) and the Architectural Services Department had set up a working group, which frequently discussed ways to optimise FEHD's public toilets to ensure that the appearance of such toilets could blend well with the surrounding environment, and that their designs can keep up with the times. For public toilets at tourist attractions, FEHD would consider adopting thematic designs, featured facades, multi-colour artistic designs, decorative lighting with characteristics, etc., so as to give them an aesthetical and distinctive appearance. According to a Visitor Profile Report published by the Hong Kong Tourism Board, the Peak is the most popular tourist attraction in Hong Kong. Nevertheless, I have received complaints recently from members of the public that there were inadequate public toilets in the tourist district of the Peak, that the facilities of some of the public toilets there were substandard and that their hygiene conditions were poor, in particular the public toilet at Podium 2 of the Peak Tower. They consider that such a situation not only affects tourists' impression of Hong Kong, but also tarnishes the image of Hong Kong as an international metropolis. Given that the public toilet in the Peak Tower will be closed for refurbishment at the end of this year, some members of the public are worried that the problem of inadequate public toilets in the tourist district of the Peak will deteriorate by then, and that the facilities and design of the public toilet after refurbishment will still be incompatible with the level of the Peak as a world-class tourist attraction. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(1) of the number of toilets available for public use in the tourist district of the Peak; whether it received relevant complaints and whether it conducted any public satisfaction survey in respect of such facilities, in the past three years; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(2) whether it has planned, in response to the needs of tourists, to (i) provide additional public toilets in the tourist district of the Peak, (ii) improve the facilities of the existing public toilets and (iii) step up the management of such facilities; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that;

(3) whether, in the course of carrying out the aforesaid refurbishment works, the aforesaid working group has planned to incorporate, in the light of the actual situation, elements that reflect the characteristics of the Peak as a tourist attraction into the design of that public toilet, and to provide additional facilities therein, so as to meet the needs of tourists and other users and enhance tourists' impression of Hong Kong; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and

(4) of the short-term measures to solve the problem of inadequate public toilets in the tourist district of the Peak when the aforesaid refurbishment works are underway?

Reply:

President,

     The toilets for public use in the tourist area of the Peak are managed by several departments/organisations, including the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD), the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) as well as shopping centres in the private sector nearby.

     My reply in respect of FEHD's purview to the question raised by the Hon Yiu Si-wing is as follows:

(1) FEHD provides a public toilet in the Peak Tower (with Peak Tram Terminus) with 6 cubicles and 4 urinals in the male section and 8 cubicles in the female section, in addition to a total of 19 cubicles and 29 urinals in male toilets, 25 cubicles in female toilets and 10 accessible unisex toilets provided in the Peak Tower's shopping centre and Peak Galleria nearby; 4 cubicles and 6 urinals in male toilets, 8 cubicles in female toilets and 2 accessible unisex toilets provided by LCSD in the Mount Austin Playground and Victoria Peak Garden; as well as 2 cubicles in the male section and 2 cubicles in the female section of the public toilet provided by AFCD in Lung Fu Shan Country Park for the use of the public and tourists.

     FEHD received 8, 8 and 14 complaints about the public toilet of the Peak Tower in 2015, 2016 and 2017 respectively, mainly concerning its cleanliness and repairs of facilities.  FEHD has already handled and followed up the complaints.

     FEHD has not conducted any satisfaction survey on the services provided for the public toilet in the Peak Tower.  That said, FEHD has long been mindful of the hygiene conditions and usage of the facilities of the toilet and taken follow-up actions as appropriate.

(2) Concerning the provision of additional public toilets, FEHD will consider a number of factors, such as the number of nearby toilets available for the public and tourists (including the toilets provided by other government departments and private sector shopping centres), local pedestrian flow, the availability of suitable locations for new public toilets, etc. and decide whether there is a need to build new toilet(s) according to the actual situation.  As far as the tourist area of the Peak is concerned, FEHD has no plan to build any new public toilet at the Peak since there have already been quite a number of toilet facilities available for the public and tourists.  That being the case, FEHD will review the service of public toilets in the area on a regular basis to ensure that the facilities provided can meet the requirements.

     With respect to upgrading the public toilet facilities for the tourist area of the Peak, FEHD and the Architectural Services Department (ArchSD) have set up a working group which holds frequent discussions on how to optimise FEHD's public toilets to ensure that the design of public toilet facilities could blend well with the surrounding environment and keep up with the times, with a view to making the public toilet facilities hygienic, clean, safe and decent.  In planning new toilets and reprovisioning or refurbishing existing ones, FEHD will follow its established standards of provision.  The working group will decide on the exterior design, installations and equipment, as well as materials having regard to the actual circumstances of individual toilets.  For public toilets at tourist spots, FEHD will consider adopting thematic layouts, featured facades, multi-colour artistic designs and decorative lighting to make the toilets aesthetical and distinctive, providing good ventilation, making the best use of natural lighting in addition to artificial lighting, as well as utilising advanced facilities such as infra-red sensor-activated taps and flushing equipment.  Subject to site conditions and other circumstantial factors, FEHD will consider providing more pedestal type water closets to meet the needs of tourists.

     As regards stepping up the management of public toilets of the Peak, FEHD has deployed toilet attendants to work there to ensure that the toilets are clean and hygienic with toilet paper and liquid soap replenished as well as damages of facilities reported for speedy repairs.  In parallel, FEHD staff are deployed for daily inspection of the conditions of hygiene, cleanliness and facilities of the public toilets of the Peak.  Blitz inspections will be strengthened to monitor the performance of cleansing service contractors and the cleanliness of the toilets.  If any default or irregularity of the contractor is found, FEHD will take follow-up actions as appropriate, including issuing verbal and written warnings, and default notice to deduct the monthly payment for service.  FEHD also holds regular meetings with the contractor to review its service performance and identify areas for further improvement.

(3) Apart from the current design standards, the working group set up by FEHD and ArchSD have considered a number of factors in vetting and approving the designs of the refurbishment works for the public toilet of the Peak Tower, including the toilet's existing conditions, utilisation rate, the views of the Tourism Commission and the property management agency of the Peak Tower, etc. to ensure that the refurbished toilet can better meet the needs of users and blend well with the interior design features of the Peak Tower.  In the light of the actual situation, there will be more urinals and cubicles in the male and female sections respectively after refurbishment, and one of the cubicles in the male section will be converted into a universal toilet.  Facilities including lighting and ventilation systems will also be enhanced and upgraded.

(4) To address the temporary inadequacy of toilet facilities in the tourist area of the Peak during the refurbishment period of the public toilet at the Peak Tower (expected from the third quarter of 2018 to the second quarter of 2019), FEHD will provide mobile toilets for the use of tourists at suitable location in the vicinity of the public toilet.  Besides, FEHD will refurbish the public toilet of the Peak Tower by phases so as to minimise the problems arising from temporary inadequacy of toilet facilities due to the refurbishment works.