Cost of artificial island for Delta Bridge due to increase

Included as part of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge (also known as the Delta Bridge), the budget for the development of an artificial island is due to rise to HKD35 billion, as reported by the South China Morning Post. The HKSAR’s Transport and Housing Bureau has filed a request for a further HKD5 billion, which will be put to a vote by lawmakers.
The 50-kilometer bridge, which will link Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau, is due to open in 2016. Higher wages for construction workers and increased prices for machinery and materials were to blame for the rise. Reclamation work and construction of facilities related to the bridge will make the project four times more expensive.
The Hong Kong section of the bridge will cost about one-tenth of the HKD87 billion total. In Hong Kong, authorities stressed that the increased figure is an estimate. An exact figure will be available before lawmakers vote on the request.
According to a South China Morning Post editorial, lawmakers are expected to back the request, since another high-profile project, the high-speed railway line to Shenzhen, will require at least HKD5.1 billion more than the previously approved HKD66 billion budget.