Cross-Harbour Tunnel Toll Plaza

If ever there was an ultimate testing ground for driving skills– this would be the place. I, along with other motorists and public transport users, squeeze ourselves from a 10 lane toll plaza into a 2 lane tunnel. You can imagine how much squeezing there is involved– its basically organized chaos but accidents are actually few and far between given the volume of traffic.
This is the lifeline of Hong Kong– in the past there was only one tunnel so there was no other choice. If you choked this place then you can effectively choke Hong Kong. Period. Nowadays, even though there are 3 tunnels with numerous other ferries and MTR lines, this is still an important passageway given the lower toll fees charged here and this could be seen through the stark contrast in traffic flow between this tunnel and the other two; notably the Western Harbour Tunnel.
For drivers this is a necessary evil– for public transport users this is just a necessity. This is the main point of transfer for passengers taking cross harbor buses and transferring to other modes of transport and at rush hours the queues are a fine example of how organized we could be in Hong Kong. Given any other places i believe fights would have long erupted and I think we deserve a pat on the back for this.
If we ever needed a photo that told you how busy Hong Kong is– look no further than a snapshot of this place at rush hour.

Living in Sha Tin, the cross harbour bus stops are somewhat of a gateway to HK island for me. I don’t like taking the MTR all the way there because of the million interchanges, and this route is just much more comfortable (although more expensive too).
Once you get out of the Hung Hom Station, the bus stops are just a minute away. There are actually two sets of bus stops — one closer to the station for destinations including Causeway Bay and eastern HK like North Point and Shau Kei Wan, and the other set is a little further down — you’ll want to head here if you’re going to Happy Valley and the south side, to name a few.
The one thing I like about these bus stops is convenience. It’s extremely close to the Hung Hom station — they’re practically next to each other. There are buses to pretty much every corner of HK island here. The bad thing though is that in the summer, waiting for a bus can be a seriously sweltering ordeal, especially if you’re waiting for a bus that doesn’t come that often. And it doesn’t help that everyone around you is working up a sweat just waiting too. There are more bus stops at the area closer to the station so naturally it’s more crowded, and at peak hour it might get confusing where the lines for the bus you want to take even start.
Getting to Causeway Bay is really convenient here — lots of buses — 102, 106, 112, 116 and 108 all go there. 112 and 116 are more ‘central’ as they stop outside Sogo. 108 stops near Lee Theatre, and 102 and 106 stop near Windsor House so it may be a bit of a trek depending on where in CWB you intend to go.