Hong Kong Celebrates Culture and Community at 46th Boston Dragon Boat Festival

2025-06-09 11:20 Last Updated At：11:28

New York ETO celebrates culture and community at Boston Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival

The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York (New York ETO) proudly supported the 46th Boston Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival on June 8 (Boston time), where more than 2 000 paddlers from 72 teams raced on the Charles River in a vibrant celebration of sport and culture.

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New York ETO celebrates culture and community at Boston Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

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New York ETO celebrates culture and community at Boston Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases

The Director of the New York ETO, Ms Maisie Ho, highlighted the festival's special significance in her opening remarks.

"As the first North American dragon boat festival established in 1979, this event holds a unique place in sharing Hong Kong's cultural heritage. The teamwork and energy we see on the water mirror the dynamism that defines Hong Kong itself," she said.

Ms Ho emphasised how the festival strengthens ties between Hong Kong and Boston across multiple sectors including business, innovation, and technology.

"As we forge ahead in enhancing our economy and global competitiveness, Hong Kong – anchored on the core principles of openness, global connectivity and value creation – welcomes business and talents from Boston and around the world," she said.

Apart from the exciting actions on water, the festival grounds buzzed with activities like cultural performances, craft demonstrations, and Asian culinary offerings. The New York ETO's promotional booth attracted significant interest, distributing souvenirs to participants and an estimated 60 000 spectators throughout the day.

Transport Department Advances Smart Mobility in Hong Kong Through Innovative Projects and Funding Initiatives.

Smart Traffic Fund pools efforts of government, industry, academic and research sectors to drive Hong Kong's long-term smart mobility development

The Transport Department today (April 13) said that it has been pooling the efforts of government, industry, academic and research sectors through the Smart Traffic Fund (STF) to promote the long-term development of smart mobility in Hong Kong.

The Commissioner for Transport, Miss Winnie Tse, visited the InnoEX 2026 to learn more about the STF projects showcased at the Smart Hong Kong Pavilion, and experience how digital technology and artificial intelligence (AI) have been integrated into traffic and transport solutions:

(1) Enhancing vehicle and driving safety

The requirement for vehicles with extendable aerial structures to be equipped with an over-height warning system has been implemented in phases since March 2025. The STF has funded a research centre in developing a monitoring system for crane height and position, preventing accidents caused by unretracted crane arms damaging bridges as well as safeguarding driving and road safety. This system is now commercially available, benefitting the trade;

The STF subsidised a university in developing an intelligent driving training system for container trucks using extended realitytechnology and a dynamic motion platform. It provides truck drivers with highly realistic simulated scenarios for personalised training to improve driving skills; and

The STF also funded a university to establish an alertingsystem for identifying risky driving behaviour or signs of distraction by monitoring and analysing neural transmission data, including physiological indicators and changes in psychological states. By shifting the safety line from "post-accident reaction" to "pre-accident warning", the system effectively reduces the risk of traffic accidents.

(2) Enhancing public service efficiency

The STF subsidised a university to adopt AI technology to analyse pedestrian motion (such as characteristics like slower walking speeds of the elderly or persons with mobility impairment) to support the dynamic optimisation of pedestrian traffic signal timings, thereby enhancing the experience of pedestrians at crossings;

The STF funded a university in developing multi-tier concrete inspection methods to detect surface and subsurface structural defects in bridge decks. This improves inspection accuracy and facilitates preventive maintenance in an orderly manner, enhancing the efficiency of structural maintenance of bridges; and

The STF also subsidised a university in developing a smart route planning platform for transporting modular integrated construction modules. By enabling precise monitoring of street conditions along logistics routes, it ensures the safe delivery of large-scale prefabricated components to construction sites, enhancing transport safety and efficiency, thereby accelerating construction progress.

(3) Commuting convenience for persons with visual impairment

The STF subsidised a private company in developing smart glasses, which apply AI computer vision technology to assist persons with visual impairment in identifying obstacles, bus stops, carriageways and pavements. The glasses also provide navigation functions to enhance the travel convenience and safety of visually impaired persons.

(4) Improving public transport safety and scheduling efficiency

The STF funded a start-up in developing systems to monitor the dynamic speed limit of public light buses (PLBs) in real-time according to their specific road sections, deploy the fleet based on passenger data, and display arrival information of routes at minibus stops using solar power. They enhance minibus driving safety, assist passengers in planning their journeys, and support fleet deployment and operational management; and

The STF also subsidised a research centre in developing door-mounted monitoring devices for PLBs. These sensors ensure passenger safety during boarding and alighting, preventing accidents at the source and enhancing the overall operational safety of the minibus.

Miss Tse said, "The STF has been funding enterprises as well as technology and research institutes to develop projects that have effectively assisted the transport trades, passengers, persons in need and government departments in addressing different scenarios in traffic, transport and logistics. They have played a crucial role in facilitating commuting convenience, enhancing efficiency of the road network or road space, and enhancing driving safety. We encourage more eligible organisations to apply for funding to jointly advance smart transport and traffic so that technology empowers, transport serves and people benefit."

The Government set up the $1 billion STF at end-March 2021 to support enterprises or organisations in conducting research and applications of innovative vehicle-related technologies. As of end-March 2026, the STF had approved a total of 89 projects over the past five years, with funding of about $619 million.

Hong Kong Celebrates Culture and Community at 46th Boston Dragon Boat Festival

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