Texaco Road
Texaco Road
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Texaco Road

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Texaco Road

Texaco Road (Chinese: 德士古道) is a road in Tsuen Wan, New Territories, Hong Kong. It connects the Tsuen Kam Interchange with Ma Tau Pa Road and Wing Shun Street, intersecting with both the Tsuen Tsing Interchange [zh] and Castle Peak Road. Texaco Road, the first internal road in Tsuen Wan, was constructed in the 1930s to facilitate the industrial development of the Texaco Fuel Company at Cape Tsing Yi Bay and was later renovated in 1959. The section of Texaco Road north of Castle Peak Road was constructed later and opened on March 31, 1981; this section is now referred to as Texaco Road North (in Chinese: 德士古道北), and the Texaco Interchange (in Chinese: 德士古交匯處), where Texaco Road intersects Castle Peak Road, was inaugurated on the same day.

During the 1990s, improvement works were conducted on Texaco Road. In the first phase of these works, a single two-lane overpass was constructed to connect Tsuen Wan Road, the Tsing Tsuen Bridge, and Texaco Road North, opening on December 28, 1991. Since the third phase of the improvement project was ultimately canceled, an unfinished bridge from the second phase, completed in 1995, has remained unused and was highlighted in an Ombudsman’s proactive investigation report as a case study. The section of Texaco Road south of Castle Peak Road, running northeast to southwest, marks the boundary between Tsuen Wan District and Kwai Tsing District, and Texaco Road also serves as the dividing line between Phase 1 and Phase 2 of Tsuen Wan Road.

Texaco Road is the first internal road in Tsuen Wan. Texaco Road was constructed in the 1930s to facilitate the industrial development of the Texaco Fuel Company at the Cape of Tsing Yi Bay. As part of the Tsuen Wan District Improvement Plan, Texaco Road underwent renovation and widening works starting in September 1959, with the project lasting six months. Upon completion, Texaco Road featured two 24-foot-wide traffic lanes, with a 1,500-foot section paved with gravel. A 6-foot-wide median separated the two lanes, with 13-foot-wide sidewalks on each side.

As part of the Tsuen Wan New Town Integrated Development Plan, Texaco Road was officially extended to the Tsuen Kam Interchange on March 31, 1981, at 11 a.m., with the creation of the “Texaco Interchange” to facilitate vehicle access to Texaco Road from Castle Peak Road. The intersection between Shing Mun Road and Castle Peak Road was closed on the same day. Following Route Twisk, the section of Tsuen Kam Road from its original intersection with Castle Peak Road to near Shek Wai Kok Estate was closed to traffic at 11 a.m. the following day, with only a short section remaining for access to Mei Wan Street [zh]. The extended section of Texaco Road is now known as “Texaco Road North,” featuring an overpass with a concave shape to accommodate a nearby park. The bridge deck is supported by branched struts, with the underside incorporated as part of the park extension.

After the completion of the Tsing Tsuen Bridge and Shing Mun Tunnel (then called “Route 5”), the traffic volume on Texaco Road increased significantly, surpassing its capacity. As a result, the Hong Kong government implemented improvement works on Texaco Road, carried out in three phases. Phase 1 involved constructing the Texaco Road Overpass, widening Texaco Road, and rerouting a section of Kwai Fuk Road [zh]. The project, managed by AECOM as the consulting engineer and constructed by Leighton Contractors, cost HK$127 million. Construction began in April 1989, and the Texaco Road Overpass opened to traffic on December 28, 1991, with the inauguration ceremony held the next day by acting director of Territory Development [zh] Chow Che-King. Phase 2 primarily involved constructing the Tsuen Tsing Interchange and a section of reserved overpass, which started in April 1992 and was completed in 1995. During Phase 2, a 300-meter section of overpass and connection point were pre-built at the northeastern end of the Tsuen Tsing Interchange on Tsing Tsuen Road to facilitate the connection of the southbound overpass in the future Phase 3. The overpass segment and connection point were completed in 1995. However, in 1999, the Transport Bureau [zh] decided to shelve Phase 3 after reviewing the traffic flow changes in Tsuen Wan District. Additionally, the reclamation plan for Tsuen Wan District was canceled due to the Protection of the Harbour Ordinance, resulting in lower-than-expected traffic growth. In September 2002, Texaco Road's Phase 3 project was removed from the Public Works Programme.

Texaco Road and Texaco Road North have a combined length of 2.07 kilometers, with Texaco Road itself measuring 1.52 kilometers and Texaco Road North extending for 550 meters. Texaco Road begins at its intersection with Ma Tau Pa Road and Wing Shun Street, heading southeast and intersecting with Wing Tak Street. It then shifts slightly east-southeast and provides exits to Lung Tak Street and the Tsuen Tsing Interchange. Texaco Road then turns northeast, with additional exits to the Tsuen Tsing Interchange and an overpass connection to Tsing Tsuen Road. It continues northeast, intersecting with Yeung Uk Road [zh] and Kwai Fuk Road [zh], then with Sha Tsui Road [zh]. Texaco Road provides exits to Tsuen Wing Street and Tsuen Fu Street before intersecting with Tai Wo Hau Road. A segment of Texaco Road, oriented northeast–southwest, includes an overpass that crosses the ground level route. The overpass and ground-level section merge, crossing Castle Peak Road and continuing onto Texaco Road North. Texaco Road North then gradually curves northwest, intersecting with Kwok Shui Road and Shing Mun Road (west section) through left-in/left-out junctions, while the east section of Shing Mun Road merges onto Texaco Road North. Finally, Texaco Road North continues northwest to the Tsuen Kam Interchange.

Texaco Road features a 700-meter overpass that begins at the Tsing Tsuen Bridge approach and ends near Tak Tai Path. The section of Texaco Road North near Shek Wai Kok Road previously had an exit to that road, which was permanently closed and rerouted on April 9, 1988. The western end of Shek Wai Kok Road now connects to Wai Tsuen Road [zh], with no direct access to Texaco Road North. Access from Texaco Road North to Shek Wai Kok Road now requires passing through the Tsuen Kam Interchange and Wai Tsuen Road.

Both Texaco Road and Texaco Road North are located within the Tsuen Wan District; however, the segment of Texaco Road running in a northeast–southwest direction also belongs to the Kwai Tsing District and serves as the boundary between both districts. In the description below, “upbound” refers to the direction from the intersection of Texaco Road with Ma Tau Pa Road and Wing Shun Street towards the Tsuen Kam Interchange or Castle Peak Road towards Kwu Tung, while “downbound” refers to the opposite direction.

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