The Transport Department said on Monday that around 100 traffic lights are down in the Yau Tsim Mong area after demonstrators vandalised them during a massive anti-government protest on Sunday.

Authorities say many of the lights are out on busy thoroughfares such as Nathan Road, Canton Road, Argyle Street and Waterloo Road, and warned it will take some time for them to conduct repairs. They have asked motorists to be extra cautious saying without the lights, the risk of accidents has significantly increased.

One commuter, Jimmy Saghavi, told RTHK the protesters shouldn’t have targeted the traffic lights, as this made life very difficult for people.

“It’s very dangerous for the commuters because there are no signal lights … and you don’t know whether you should cross the road… They should protest in such a way like Gandhi. You protest but don’t do harm to the public, utilities and other things”, he said.

However, another pedestrian, Beatrice Ng, said she understands why protesters resorted to such action.

“There is a reason the protesters did that. Maybe it’s a little bit dangerous but they did this because they have five demands. The government never listened to the protesters so I think it’s ok”, she said.