Mass Transit Railway
Mass Transit Railway , short: MTR ( Chinese 港 鐵 / 港 铁 , Pinyin Gǎngtiě , Jyutping Gong 2 tit 3 - "[Hong-] Kong-Eisen [-bahn]", from 1979 - 2007 : 香港 地鐵 / 香港 地铁 , Xiānggǎng Dìtiě , Jyutping Hoeng 1 gong 2 Dei 6 tit 3 - "Hong Kong subway"), is the name of the Hong Kong subway system . The first line, the Kwun Tong Line , opened in 1979. The shares of this company, which was privatized in October 2000, are traded on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and are listed in the Hang Seng Index . In 2007, through the merger of the two railway companies in Hong Kong, the route network of the railway ( Heavy Rail , German about "heavy rail traffic", 重 鐵 / 重 铁 - " Vollbahn ") and Light Rail Transit , short: LRT (ugs. Light Rail , German about "Light rail traffic", 輕 鐵 / 轻 铁 - " small train "), the Kowloon-Canton Railway (KCR) merged with the subway network of the MTR Corporation (MTRC). Today (as of 2018) the route network comprises (excluding the traffic of the "Light Rails" ) eleven lines with a total of 113 stops (99 of them underground) and a total length of around 231 km. The MTR carries an average of around 5.76 million passengers on weekdays . Since the merger in 2007, all of Hong Kong's rail traffic has been operated by MTR Corporation, with the exception of the Hong Kong Tramways on the north coast of Hong Kong Island .
The MTR is one of the founding members of the subway benchmarking system Community of Metros .
Line network
The MTR network consists of the following lines:
| Surname | colour | route | expansion | opening | length | Hold. | Travel time ² | depot | Gauge | electricity | Control center |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heavy rail network | |||||||||||
| East Rail Line ¹ | Light Blue | Hung Hom ↔ Lo Wu / Lok Ma Chau | 2021 | Oct. 1, 1910 | 34 km | 14th | 42/45 min | Ho Tung Lau | 1435 mm | AC 25000V | Tsing Yi |
| Kwun Tong Line | green | Whampoa ↔ Tiu Keng Leng | N / A | Oct. 1, 1979 | 18.4 km | 17th | 35 min | Kowloon Bay | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Tsuen Wan Line | red | Tsuen Wan ↔ Central | N / A | May 17, 1982 | 16 km | 16 | 30 min | Tsuen Wan | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Island Line | blue | Kennedy Town ↔ Chai Wan | N / A | May 31, 1985 | 16.3 km | 17th | 34 min | Chai Wan | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Tung Chung Line | orange | Hong Kong ↔ Tung Chung | 2026 | Jun 21, 1998 | 31.1 km | 8th | 27 min | Siu Ho Wan | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Airport Express | turquoise | Hong Kong ↔ AsiaWorld-Expo | N / A | July 6, 1998 | 35.2 km | 5 | 28 min | Siu Ho Wan | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Tseung Kwan O Line | violet | North Point ↔ Po Lam / LOHAS Park | 2026 | Aug 18, 2002 | 11.9 km | 8th | 15/20 min | LOHAS Park | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| West Rail Line | purple | Hung Hom ↔ Tuen Mun | 2019 | Dec 20, 2003 | 35.4 km | 12 | 37 min | Pat Heung | 1435 mm | AC 25000V | Tsing Yi |
| Ma On Shan Line | brown | Wu Kai Sha ↔ Tai Wai | 2019 | Dec 21, 2004 | 11.4 km | 9 | 16 min | Tai Wai | 1435 mm | AC 25000V | Tsing Yi |
| Disneyland Resort Line | purple | Sunny Bay ↔ Disneyland Resort | N / A | Aug 1, 2005 | 3.3 km | 2 | 4.5 min | Siu Ho Wan | 1432 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi / Sunny Bay |
| South Island Line | Light green | Admiralty ↔ South Horizons | N / A | Dec 28, 2016 | 7.4 km | 5 | 11 min | Wong Chuk Hang | 1435 mm | DC 1500V | Tsing Yi |
| Light rail network | |||||||||||
| Light Rail (12 lines) | Olive green | diverse | N / A | Sep 18 1988 | 36.2 km | 68 | diverse | Tuen Mun | 1435 mm | DC 750V | Tuen Mun |
Note: ¹ electrification 1982–83 by KCR , ² total travel time with intermediate stops
The oldest line is the East Rail Line . It ran from East Tsim Sha Tsui in Kowloon to Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau in the New Territories and became part of the KCRC (Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation) in 2008 together with the West Rail Line and the Ma On Shan Line MTR. In August 2009 the route to Hung Hom was shortened. East Tsim Sha Tsui station is now served by the West Rail Line.
The Kwun Tong Line runs its entire length in Kowloon . The Tsuen Wan Line runs from Central Station on Hong Kong Island through the center of Kowloon to the northwestern district of Tsuen Wan.
The Island Line opens up the densely populated areas along the north coast of Hong Kong Island.
The Airport Express and Tung Chung Line both start on Hong Kong Island, traverse west of Kowloon, and together reach Lantau Island ; there they branch off and lead to Hong Kong International Airport and the Tung Chung residential area.
The Tseung Kwang O Line connects the island of Hong Kong with the east of Kowloon and travels through the eastern port tunnel.
The South Island Line opens up the rather sparsely populated southern part of Hong Kong Island. With the option to change trains in Admiral, this part is now completely connected to the line network.
The West Island Line , which will open up the west of the island of Hong Kong, is still in the planning stage .
history
The first planning
The Hong Kong government assumed during the 1960s that the volume of traffic would increase sharply due to the strong economic growth. She commissioned the British consultancy Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates to prepare a study of the future transport system for Hong Kong. The company published the "Hong Kong Mass Transport Study" in September 1967, in which it proposed the construction of an underground means of mass transport.
In 1970, in a follow-up study entitled "Hong Kong Transit: Further Studies", four lines were proposed, the Kwun Tong Line , the Tsuen Wan Line , the Island Line and the East Kowloon Line. The MTR lines have retained their name from the planning phase until today, but the route guidance from the drafts differs from today's.
In 1972, the government of Hong Kong granted the approval to build a 20-kilometer-long basic network ( initial system ), consisting of most of the current Kwun Tong Line. Negotiations with four large construction consortia began in 1973. The government's intention was to award the entire project in one piece and at a set price. A consortium from Japan signed an agreement at the beginning of 1974, but then withdrew in December of that year.
Changes to the basic network
A few weeks later, in early 1975, an agency called the Mass Transport Provisional Authority was created to take responsibility for the project. It announced that the basic network would be shortened to 15.6 kilometers and would be called the Modified Initial System . The intention to delegate execution to a single consortium has been dropped. Instead, 25 different construction contracts were concluded, as well as ten contracts for electrics and mechanics. In addition, the state-owned Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC) was founded, which replaced the Mass Transport Provisional Authority .
Construction of the modified basic network began in November 1975. On October 1, 1979, the Kwun Tong Line began operating between the Shek Kip Mei and Kwun Tong stops . This line was built partly underground and partly above ground on a viaduct, which saved considerable costs. On December 31, 1979, the route from Shek Kip Mei to Tsim Sha Tsui was extended. On February 12, 1980, another extension followed under the harbor basin to Chater Station (now Central ) on the island of Hong Kong.
Tsuen Wan Line
In 1977 the government approved the construction of the Tsuen Wan Line (then known as the Tsuen Wan Extension ); construction began in November 1978. This project added a 10.5 kilometer stretch from Prince Edward to Tsuen Wan to the MTR system. The cost was Hong Kong $ 4.1 billion .
When this line started operating on May 10, 1982, the existing line between the Chater (now Central ) stations and Argyle (now Mong Kok ) was transferred to the Tsuen Wan Line. Thus was now Waterloo (today Yau Ma Tei ) the new terminus of the Kwun Tong Line . Both Argyle and Prince Edward now had the function of a transfer station. This change happened because the planners assumed that the number of passengers on the Tsuen Wan Line would be greater than on the Kwun Tong Line. However, after 1998, much of the traffic northwest of Lai King has shifted to the new Tung Chung Line .
The planned Tsuen Wan West station has not yet been built despite land purchases. The site is now partially used by the Kowloon Canton Railway Corporation's West Rail route .
Island Line
The official approval for the construction of the Island Line was given in December 1980 and construction began in October 1981. The section between Admiralty and Chai Wan was opened on May 31, 1985; at the Admiralty and Central stations it was now possible to transfer to the Tsuen Wan Line. The extension to Sheung Wan took place on May 23, 1986. The construction of this section had been delayed by a year because government buildings above the planned station had to be demolished first.
Extension under the eastern harbor basin
In 1984 the government approved the construction of the Eastern Harbor Tunnel , a combined vehicle and subway tunnel under the eastern part of Victoria Harbor . The Kwun Tong Line was extended from Kwun Tong in Kowloon to Quarry Bay on Hong Kong Island . This created a new transfer option in the eastern area of the Island Line . The extension went into operation on August 5, 1989; on October 1, 1989, a stopover at Lam Tin followed .
Airport Express and Tung Chung Line
In October 1989 the decision was made to build a new international airport on Chek Lap Kok near Lantau Island to replace the congested Kai Tak airport . The government commissioned the MTR with the construction of a railway connection, at that time still under the name Lantau Airport Railway .
However, construction only began in November 1994 after the People's Republic of China and Great Britain had agreed on the type of financing. Because the new airport would not have been able to operate independently without a rail link, both projects were financed jointly. The MTR contributed half of the construction costs of the railway line and in return received permission to build large superstructures at the new stations.
The Airport Express started operating on July 6, 1998, at the same time as the new airport. The Tung Chung Line for local traffic in Kowloon and Lantau was opened on June 21 by Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa .
Relief of the Quarry Bay station
This project included the extension of the Kwun Tong Line on Hong Kong Island from Quarry Bay to North Point . It had become necessary because passengers were increasingly complaining about the overcrowding of the Quarry Bay stations , as well as the long walk when changing between the Kwun Tong Line and the Island Line. Construction work began in September 1997 and was completed in September 2001.
Tseung Kwan O Line
Construction of the Tseung Kwan O Line was approved on August 18, 1998; construction began on April 24, 1999. The new line, which runs from Po Lam to North Point , was opened to traffic on August 18, 2002. The Kwun Tong Line was diverted to the Tiu Keng Leng station at the same time , because the new line took over the existing section under the harbor basin to the island of Hong Kong. The Tseung Kwan O Line has been partially financed privately, as it enabled the development of a previously underdeveloped area and led to the construction of a new residential and business district.
Extensions
The MTR system has been expanded several times since the merger. Relevant projects are the LOHAS Park Stub Line (2009), the Kowloon Southern Link (2009), the West Island Line (2014), the Kwun Tong Line Extension (2016) and the South Island Line (2016).
The LOHAS Park Spur Line is an extension of the Tseung Kwan O Line, which branches off after the Tseung Kwan O station. It serves the new residential area of LOHAS Park (formerly "Dream City"), a 330,000 m² site with fifty residential towers. The project is divided into 9 to 13 phases and will be about halfway completed by 2016. These skyscrapers are located above LOHAS Park Station, which opened on July 26, 2009.
The West Island Line, first submitted to the government on January 21, 2003, is an extension of the Island Line. It serves the western district of Hong Kong Island. Construction of the West Island Line began on August 10, 2009. The Kennedy Town and HKU stations opened on December 28, 2014. Sai Ying Pun Station opened later on March 29, 2015 due to construction delays.
A proposal to expand the existing Kwun Tong Line to Whampoa Garden was made in April 2006 and approved in March 2008 as part of the offer for the Sha Tin to Central Link. Two new stations in Whampoa and Ho Man Tin opened on October 23, 2016.
The South Island Line opened on December 28, 2016 between Admiralty and South Horizons and connects the South District to the MTR for the first time. With the opening of the South Island Line, all 18 districts of Hong Kong will be served by the MTR.
Protests in Hong Kong
On July 21, 2019, hundreds of white-clad mobs with wooden sticks and metal pipes entered the MTR's Yuen Long and attacked people indiscriminately. It is widely believed that the attack was carried out by pro-Beijing paid thugs. A pregnant woman was found injured on the floor and journalists were also attacked. The mob entered the paid area and attacked commuters aboard a train that couldn't leave. Over 40 people were hospitalized. Following the incident, pro-Beijing lawmaker Junius Ho was accused of supporting the attack.
On August 31, 2019, Hong Kong Police Special Tactics officers entered the Prince Edward during a protest and attacked people inside. Tear gas was fired by the police in closed rooms, including on the trains themselves. Innocent passengers were caught in the operation and it was widely viewed as a brutal attempt to stop the protests. There were unconfirmed rumors of suspicious police deaths after disagreements about the number of injuries resulting from the operation emerged.
future
- With the Sha Tin to Central Link project, two new railway corridors will be created after completion:
- The section from Tai Wai to Hung Hom, which connects the Ma On Shan Line and the West Rail Line to the Tuen Ma Line, has been postponed. The first section, which connects Tai Wai via Hin Keng and Diamond Hill to Kai Tak Station, is scheduled to open on January 5, 2020. A revised date for the section from Kai Tak to Hung Hom will be announced. The Tuen Ma Line will be extended to Tuen Mun South Railway Station, which serves Tuen Mun South.
- The extension of the East Rail route from Hung Hom to Admiralty via Victoria Harbor is expected to be completed in 2021.
- The North Island Line is a planned extension of the Tseung Kwan O-Line, which will be exchanged with the Tung Chung Line on the future Tamar . It will ease the traffic in the northern part of Hong Kong Island. Three new stations will be created: Tamar, Exhibition Center (which serves as an interchange between the North Island Line and the North-South Corridor) and Causeway Bay North. Construction is expected to begin in 2021 and be completed in 2026. The 2013 cost is estimated at HK $ 20 billion.
- The South Island Line (West) was part of the same original proposal as the South Island Line and was designed to connect HKU to Wong Chuk Hang on the west coast of Hong Kong Island. However, construction did not begin until 2019.
- The North Link is a proposed new line connecting the Tuen Ma Line with the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line of the East Rail Line. It also has Au Tau, Ngau Tam Mei and San Tin, a future interchange between the East Rail Line and the Northern Link, Kwu Tung, which will act as the terminus for the Northern Link.
- The East Kowloon Line would serve the area from East Kowloon via the hilly residential area of Sau Mau Ping to Tseung Kwan O New Town.
Fares and times
A distinction is made between adult tariff and reduced tariff. The reduced fare applies to children under the age of 12 or people older than 65, as well as full-time students and pupils aged 12 to 25.
The standard fare is based on the distance traveled and ranges from 4 Hong Kong dollars (HKD) to 26 HKD. Reduced tariffs are usually half of this, i.e. H. there is a price range between HKD 2 and HKD 13. An exception applies to the Airport Express from the airport to the terminus on Hong Kong Island (Central). A one-way ticket for this route costs 100 HKD (50 HKD reduced).
There are three ways to pay the fare: Octopus card , single ticket and Tourist Pass, which acts as a day pass for the MTR. When using the Octopus card, there are separate discounts on the fare.
The underground trains run daily (depending on the location of the stop) from around 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. and have a frequency of four minutes during normal times of the day up to two minutes during rush hour .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ MTR Corporation - Annual Report 2017 p. 38 (English) [1] (PDF file; 9.7MB) In: www.mtr.com.hk, accessed on November 19, 2018 - online
- ↑ Hong Kong: Unidentified thugs in white T-shirts beat up demonstrators. In: Merkur.de . July 22, 2019, accessed August 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Lea Deuber: Attacks on demonstrators: The violence escalates in Hong Kong. In: sueddeutsche.de . July 22, 2019, accessed August 13, 2019 .