01 April 2010

Tower of power


Kowloon skyline
Originally uploaded by eT le snap
This vast construction site in West Kowloon sits atop the Airport Express rapid rail link to Hong Kong International Airport. There's a train station underneath from which passengers can be whisked to the airport in about 20 minutes. Each of these new towers is massive, but the leftmost is the biggest around. Known as the International Commerce Centre, when this 484m tower was completed in 2009 it secured the status of Hong Kong's tallest building, besting Hong Kong Island's spectacular IFC2 (415m). It's currently the fourth highest skyscraper in the world, behind Dubai's Burj Khalifa, Taipei 101 in Taiwan and the slightly taller Shanghai World Finance Centre. Once it's fully operational later in 2010 the 118-storey ICC tower will feature a public viewing platform on the 100th floor and the highest hotel in the world, with the Ritz-Carlton taking the top 15 floors.

The odd-shaped skyscraper in the centre of the picture is the Arch Tower, which at 81 storeys and 231m high is the third highest residential building in Hong Kong.

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