Canal Road, Hong Kong

Canal Road East, Canal Road West and the Canal Road Flyover are important roads in the Wan Chai District of Hong Kong Island, between the areas of Causeway Bay and Wan Chai.HistoryBefore urban development, the area was the estuary of the Wong Nai Chung river, which flowed through Happy Valley. The 4th Governor of Hong Kong, John Bowring, developed the estuary area and named it Bowrington (or Bowring City). Bowrington Canal was built during the mid to late 1850s, fed by Wong Nai Chung. Because the long and narrow canal resembled the neck of a goose it was known as Ngo Keng Kan (鵝頸澗, lit. goose neck stream). It was used by small vessels that could pass under various bridges along the route. The landmark Bowrington Bridge across the canal, built in 1861, was known as Ngo Keng Kiu (鵝頸橋, lit. goose neck bridge) and carried the Hong Kong Tramways line across the waterway. The surrounding area is also known as Ngo Keng.The canal was finally covered and made subterranean and the bridge removed during the reclamation from 1922 to 1929 that created modern Wan Chai (the Praya East Reclamation Scheme). However the name survives for the area.