Outcry after Peak walking trail ‘marred’ by controversial lighting project

Work on a controversial lighting project along walking trails on The Peak has been suspended amid mounting complaints that the installations were damaging the environment, the South China Morning Post has learned.

The project’s future remains uncertain after residents accused the Tourism Board of removing trees and flowers to make way for the installations, while a lawmaker said a district councillor from the city’s largest political party had not been involved in the initial consultation.

Lugard Road and Harlech Road were quiet on Tuesday, with no workers in sight. The lighting installations remained in place behind barriers that blocked parts of the trail, with a few security guards stationed nearby.

Near a park on the Harlech Road and Lugard Road circular walk, a large stretch of grass had been fenced off and fitted with lighting installations. Some sections had been dug up.

A security guard at the site told an SCMP reporter that installation work had been suspended for three days from Wednesday.

“The work had not stopped until today,” he said, adding that “workers had still been laying and fixing wires on the grass last night”, pointing to a toolbox left on a flower-shaped lighting installation.

“We’ve been told originally that this project should be ready and open to the public before October 24th, and it has already gone through some rounds of testing last week. But now we have to wait for the result of the government consultation during the suspension.”

The SCMP has contacted the Tourism Board for confirmation.

The installations were planned for selected locations along the walking trail as part of a new light show for the forthcoming Hong Kong WinterFest.

Spotlights and light boxes line the railings along parts of the trail, while some lighting devices and tangled wires hang from tree trunks.

Transparent light strips arranged in flower shapes cover sections of grass and are connected to electrical installations shaped like the centres of flowers.

Although tourism authorities said the project was designed to “further enhance the appeal of Hong Kong’s nighttime tourism”, some visitors passing the site expressed little interest in the light show.

Wendy Wang, a master’s student at the University of Hong Kong, was walking along the trail with a friend from Beijing who was visiting the city for five days. The pair stopped to look at the installation sites.

“We chose this morning to come to The Peak to enjoy nature and work out, we were a bit surprised to see so much construction along the road,” she said.

“We don’t think the light show will be attractive for us. Such shows are quite common now, while The Peak trail is most famous for its natural scenery.”

Wang added that they preferred going to Victoria Harbour to enjoy the city’s night views.

Lawmaker Chan Hok-fung said he was following up on the issue with fellow Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong member Shih Jan-noel, a Central and Western district councillor.

Chan said he had relayed residents’ comments to tourism minister Rosanna Law Shuk-pui on Wednesday morning.

Chan, who said he had no further updates, stressed that Shih had not been involved in the Tourism Board’s initial consultation and had learnt of the issue only when residents emailed him for help.

“Comments in the past said that tourism had concentrated on either side of the Victoria Harbour and could not boost spending in other neighbourhoods with hopes to promote it elsewhere. The idea is worth pushing for,” he said.

“But whether to do this on The Peak, it’s an experience this time around. People seem to [care] a lot about the natural environment.

“Would it be popular to attract herds of tourists to the area? Everyone has a view and will be something we consider when exploring new attractions in the future.”

Rick Mesquita, a tourist from the UK who had arrived in Hong Kong the previous day for a three-day visit, said he was seeking some peace and quiet with a walk along the trail.

“We’re not interested in light installations,” he said. “I chose here to get away from the noise and bustle of the city, so the less artificial, the better.”

Man Kwok, a quality regulator who lives on Hong Kong Island and hikes up to The Peak every couple of months, visited with a friend on Wednesday morning.

“I don’t know why they chose this spot. This is a walking trail, not an artificial attraction,” he said. “It takes around 20 minutes to walk here from either end of the trail. I don’t understand why people would walk so far just to see a light show.”

Having seen photographs of the installations online, Kwok described the design as “a bit boring”.

“There’s no need to make a special trip up to The Peak to see it, and even if you do, once is enough,” he said.

He also questioned the project’s economic value.

“Even if more people come, what’s the point? They just go straight down after seeing it, and there aren’t many supporting facilities and shops. I don’t think it brings any economic benefit,” he said.