Rapid transit in Hong Kong

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Rapid transit in Hong Kong began in 1979 with part of the Modified Initial System of the MTR entered service. The section, then ran only between Shek Kip Mei and Kwun Tong stations, [1] was subsequently extended and new lines were added by the operator, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation (later renamed MTR Corporation Limited, commonly branded as MTR Corporation).

In 1983, the British Section of the Kowloon-Canton Railway (now East Rail Line of the MTR) started to be electrified. Initially resembling the common design of suburban rail, interior configuration of the EMU train cars were converted to the common design of metro or rapid transit systems, while conventional passenger trains and freight trains still run on this line. The West Rail and the Ma On Shan Rail were added to the KCR network in 2003 and 2004. All lines were leased by its former owner and operator Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) to the MTR Corporation for a 50-year period from December 2007 onwards. [2] [3] [4]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">MTR</span> Rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong

The Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is a major public transport network serving Hong Kong. Operated by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL), it consists of heavy rail, light rail, and feeder bus service centred on a 10-line rapid transit network serving the urbanised areas of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories. The system included 240.6 km (149.5 mi) of rail as of 2022 with 167 stations, including 99 heavy rail stations, 68 light rail stops and one high-speed rail terminus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kowloon–Canton Railway</span> Railway network in Hong Kong

The Kowloon–Canton Railway was a railway network in Hong Kong. It was owned and operated by the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) until 2007. Rapid transit services, a light rail system, feeder bus routes within Hong Kong, and intercity passenger and freight train services to China on the KCR network, have been operated by the MTR Corporation since 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation</span>

The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation is a Hong Kong wholly government-owned railway and land asset manager. It was established in 1982 under the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation Ordinance for the purposes of operating the Kowloon–Canton Railway (KCR), and to construct and operate other new railways. On 2 December 2007, the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL), another railway operator in Hong Kong, took over the operations of the KCR network under a 50-year service concession agreement, which can be extended. Under the service concession, KCRC retains ownership of the KCR network with the MTRCL making annual payments to KCRC for the right to operate the network. The KCRC's activities are governed by the KCRC Ordinance as amended in 2007 by the Rail Merger Ordinance to enable the service concession agreement to be entered into with the MTR Corporation Limited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kwun Tong line</span> Hong Kong railway line

The Kwun Tong line is a heavy-rail rapid transit line of the MTR network in Hong Kong, coloured green on the MTR map. Starting at Whampoa in Hung Hom and ending at Tiu Keng Leng in Tseung Kwan O, Sai Kung, the route has 17 stations and takes 35 minutes to complete. The Kwun Tong line is one of the busiest railway lines on the network connecting the central and the eastern portions of Kowloon via Wong Tai Sin. The line is mostly underground, but includes a lengthy elevated section, and runs generally in an east-west direction. During the morning rush hour, the Kwun Tong line utilises 33 trains running at 2.1-minute-intervals to achieve a route capacity of 85,000 pphpd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Rail line</span> Former Hong Kong railway line

The West Rail line was a rapid transit line that formed part of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong until 27 June 2021. Coloured magenta on the MTR map, the line ran from Tuen Mun to Hung Hom, with a total length of 35.7 kilometres (22.2 mi), in 37 minutes. The railway connected the urban area of Kowloon and the new towns of Yuen Long, Tin Shui Wai and Tuen Mun in the northwestern New Territories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Light Rail (MTR)</span> Hong Kong New Territories rail service

The Light Rail, also known as the Light Rail Transit (LRT), officially the North-West Railway, is a light rail system in Hong Kong, serving the northwestern New Territories, within Tuen Mun District and Yuen Long District. The system operates over 1,435 mmstandard gauge track, using 750 V DC overhead power supply. It was once one of four systems comprising the KCR network in Hong Kong, before the MTR–KCR merger in 2007. It has a daily ridership of about 483,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nam Cheong station</span> MTR station interchange in Kowloon, Hong Kong

Nam Cheong is a MTR interchange station located at ground level beneath West Kowloon Highway, in Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong opposite the Fu Cheong Estate. It is served by the Tung Chung and Tuen Ma lines and provides cross-platform interchange between platform 1 and platform 4. The livery of Nam Cheong station is pale yellow green.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">East Rail line</span> Hong Kong railway line

The East Rail line is one of ten lines of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. It used to be one of the three lines of the Kowloon–Canton Railway (KCR) network. It was known as the KCR British Section (九廣鐵路英段) from 1910 to 1996, and the KCR East Rail (九廣東鐵) from 1996 to 2007. East Rail was the only railway line of the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) following the closure of the Sha Tau Kok Railway and before the construction of KCR West Rail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airport Express (MTR)</span> Railway line in Hong Kong

The Airport Express is one of the lines of the Hong Kong MTR system. It links the urban area with the Hong Kong International Airport and the AsiaWorld–Expo exhibition and convention centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MTR Corporation</span> Transport services company and property developer in Hong Kong

MTR Corporation Limited is a majority government-owned public transport operator and property developer in Hong Kong which operates the Mass Transit Railway, the most popular public transport network in Hong Kong. It is listed on the Hong Kong Exchange and is a component of the Hang Seng Index. The MTR additionally invests in railways across different parts of the world, including franchised contracts to operate rapid transit systems in London, Sweden, Beijing, Hangzhou, Macau, Shenzhen, Sydney, and a suburban rail system in Melbourne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kowloon Tong station</span> MTR interchange station in Kowloon, Hong Kong

Kowloon Tong is a station on MTR's Kwun Tong line and East Rail line in New Kowloon, Hong Kong. The station serves Kowloon Tong and its vicinity, including Yau Yat Tsuen, the Festival Walk shopping centre, City University of Hong Kong and Hong Kong Baptist University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tai Wai station</span> MTR interchange station in the New Territories, Hong Kong

Tai Wai station is an interchange station on the East Rail line and the Tuen Ma line of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. The station is located in Tai Wai, Sha Tin District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hung Hom station</span> Railway station in Kowloon, Hong Kong

Hung Hom is a passenger railway station in Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is an interchange station between the East Rail line and the Tuen Ma line domestic services of the MTR network, as well as the southern terminus of cross-border through-trains to mainland China which has been suspended since 4 February 2020. The station is one of four Hong Kong ports of entry on the MTR network; the others are Lo Wu, Lok Ma Chau, and West Kowloon. As the station is located next to the Cross-Harbour Tunnel's northern portal, it is also served by many cross-harbour bus routes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin station (MTR)</span> MTR station in Kowloon, Hong Kong

Austin is an underground MTR rapid transit station on the Tuen Ma line in Hong Kong, situated perpendicular to Wui Cheung Road and Austin Road West, and formerly adjacent to Jordan Road Ferry Pier Bus Terminus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MTR Bus</span> Public bus service operated by the MTR corporation

MTR Bus is a public bus service in Hong Kong operated by the MTR Corporation. It serves the northwestern part of the New Territories. Also known as MTR Feeder Bus, it comprises a network of 15 feeder bus routes for the convenience of passengers using the MTR rapid transit network. The routes provide access to and between many MTR stations on the East Rail line, Tuen Ma line and Light Rail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SP1900 EMU</span> Model of electric multiple unit operated by the MTR

The SP1900 EMU / SP1950 EMU or IKK Train is a model of train that runs on Hong Kong's Tuen Ma line. It was the second model of electric multiple unit rolling stock of the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC), though they have been operated by MTR Corporation (MTRC) after it merged with KCRC in 2007.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guangzhou–Kowloon through train</span> Chinese intercity rail service

The Guangzhou–Kowloon through train is an inter-city railway service between Hong Kong and Guangzhou jointly operated by the MTR Corporation of Hong Kong and the Guangzhou Railway Group of mainland China. Services operate along the East Rail line within Hong Kong territory, crossing the Hong Kong–Chinese border at Lo Wu, and continuing along the Guangmao Railway and Guangshen Railway in Guangdong province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tuen Ma line</span> Hong Kong railway line part of the MTR network

The Tuen Ma line is a rapid transit line that forms part of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. Coloured brown on the map, the Tuen Ma line is 56.2 kilometres (34.9 mi) in length, making it the longest line of the MTR network. It has a total of 27 stations, more than any other in the MTR system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail transport in Hong Kong</span> Trains in the Special Administrative Region

Hong Kong's rail network mainly comprises public transport trains operated by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRC). The MTRC operates the metro network of the territory and the commuter rail network connecting the northeastern and northwestern New Territories to the urban areas. The operations of the territory's two leading railway companies, MTRC and the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC), were merged in 2007 on grounds of economies of scale and cost effectiveness. The Hong Kong Government has an explicit stated transport policy of using railways as its transport backbone.

References

  1. https://www.mtr.com.hk/en/corporate/images/investor/2014frpt/E110.pdf#Page=1 [ bare URL PDF ]
  2. "Government has reached understanding with MTRCL on the terms for merging the MTR and KCR systems".
  3. "LCQ6: Fare reduction for students after rail merger".
  4. "LCQ9: Fare concessions offered to elderly passengers by MTRC".