Future projects of the MTR

Several future projects on the MTR have been put forward by the MTR Corporation to the Hong Kong Government, with some already under construction.

With the rail merger with the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation in 2007, the combined network increased to 211.6 km. Committed and future railway projects will increase the network to over 270 km by 2019 while postponed projects may further increase it to over 300 km. Some other long term railway development possibilities should be further investigated if planning parameters change significantly.

Infrastructure upgrade

Airport Station SkyPlaza departure platform

This new platform serves departure passengers for the SkyPlaza at the airport, which is the second passenger terminal of the Hong Kong International Airport. Agreement was made with the Airport Authority in July 2005 for the construction work by the Authority. It is already completed and service started from March 2007 when the check-in facilities opened.

New trains on Tung Chung Line

To cope with the projected passenger demand in 2016, 4 new trains had been ordered. They were introduced on the Tung Chung Line from the first quarter of 2006 to the first quarter of 2007. New trains are built by ROTEM with enhancement of "K-Stock" in mind.

Lantau Airport Railway Noise Barriers

Noise barriers have been under construction along the Lantau Airport Railway to mitigate operational noise due to the increase in traffic. The works on Tsing Yi and Rambler Channel Bridge sections are currently in progress.

Pedestrian Links

MTR co-operates with the government, statutory authorities and private developers to provide pedestrian subways, footbridges and cover walkways to its stations. Major pedestrian links in progress include the Lai Chi Kok Station Cheung Lai Street Pedestrian Subway & Entrance Works and the Passenger Lift at Tai Wo Hau Station.

Automatic platform gate

MTR plans to install Automatic platform gate on platforms of 8 elevated stations (Tsuen Wan, Kwai Hing, Kwai Fong, Kowloon Bay, Ngau Tau Kok, Kwun Tong, Heng Fa Chuen and Chai Wan).

East Rail Line stations renewal

East Rail Line (former KCR British Section) has been operating for nearly one century. MTR has decided to renew 11 (above ground) stations on the system except the newest built ones. Refurbishment will be carried out under the motifs of nature and environmental protection. This project is expected to be complete in 2016. [ [http://mtr.com.hk/eng/corporate/file_rep/PR-08-048-C.pdf Press Release 0848] MTR Corporation zh_icon]

Public toilets

MTR has decided to build public toilets in 3 stations (Prince Edward, Ngau Tau Kok and Quarry Bay).

New lines

Kowloon Southern Link

The Kowloon Southern Link will connect West Rail Line's Nam Cheong Station with East Rail Line's East Tsim Sha Tsui Station with one intermediate stop at West Kowloon. It will be laid underground between Nam Cheong and Hung Hom Stations. Upon completion, West Rail Line will run to Hung Hom Station, and East Rail Line will retreat its service back to Hung Hom which will become the interchange between East Rail Line, West Rail Line and the proposed Sha Tin to Central Link. MTR will operate this new line, as a result of the rail merger with the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation.

Disputes on the funding and location of Canton Road Station, which was cancelled in the final alignment, postponed the construction by a year to 2005. Construction started on November 7 2005. This new 3.8-km long rail link is scheduled to open for service in late 2009.

Tseung Kwan O Extension (Phase 2)

In the planning of Tseung Kwan O Extension (now Tseung Kwan O Line) in 1997, MTR has planned a dedicated station, possibly named LOHAS Park Station, for the development on Area 86, now named the Lohas Park. A combined service of Tseung Kwan O Line trains to Po Lam and Tseung Kwan O South will be enacted. This project includes the building of Tseung Kwan O South Station beside the Tseung Kwan O Depot with auxiliary road works and a temporary transport interchange. It was gazetted in February 2005 with some preliminary planning and tender preparation in progress. The 3.3-km new extension will start operation in 2009.

West Island Line, South Island Line (East & West Section)

On 21 January 2003, the Executive Council of Hong Kong granted MTR Corporation Limited permission to proceed with further planning on two proposed lines: West Island Line and South Island Line. These new lines are suggested in the [http://www.hyd.gov.hk/eng/public/publications/rds/doc/rds.pdf Second Railway Development Study (RDS-2)] to provide direct links between the residential areas of Wah Fu and Ap Lei Chau in Southern District and the CBD of Hong Kong.

Three proposals were previously submitted, each addressing the drawbacks of the prior plan. In this planning stage a feasibility study was conducted to optimize the new lines in terms of cost-effectiveness, external benefits and the effect on other modes of transport. The plan was eventually turned down by the government in favour of constructing highways in late March 2004. The MTRC's fourth proposal was given in February 2005. This consisted of West Island Line extending the Island Line to Kennedy Town, South Island Line (East) from Admiralty to Ap Lei Chau and South Island Line (West) that connects the previous two lines. Legislative Councillors support an earlier completion of West Island Line. The West Island Line was finally approved by the HKSAR Government on 30 June,2005.

The 3-km West Island Line is expected to be completed in late 2013 or early 2014. Construction of the 7-km South Island Line (East) is expected to commence in 2011 for completion in 2015, but the remaining 8-km west section will not be completed before 2020.

hatin to Central Link and Kwun Tong Line Extension

The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation won the bid to build and operate the Sha Tin to Central Link in 2002. The KCRC announced modification to the proposal. A 11-km Tai Wai to Hung Hom section connecting the Ma On Shan Line with the Kowloon Southern Link which connects to the West Rail Line will form the East-West Line while a 6-km cross-harbour section extending the East Rail Line to Hong Kong Island will form the North-South Line.

Another proposal was floated by MTR to extend the existing Kwun Tong Line to Whampoa Garden in Hung Hom. The 3-km extension will run from the current Yau Ma Tei terminus to Whampoa, with an interchange station with the Shatin to Central Link in Ho Man Tin.

Both projects now belongs to MTR after the 2007 rail merger. The section of the Sha Tin to Central Link between Tai Wai and Hung Hom is expected to open in 2015, and the remaining cross harbour section in 2019. The Kwun Tong Line Extension will also start operation 2015. [cite web|url=http://www.mtr.com.hk/eng/projects/future_scl.html|title=Projects - Shatin to Central Link|publisher=MTR Corporation|accessdate=2008-09-25]

Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (Hong Kong Section)

The Hong Kong Section of the Express Rail Link (XRL) will be a 26-km underground high-speed rail linking Hong Kong with the national express rail network. The journey time to Guangzhou and Beijing will be reduced to 48 minutes and 10 hours respectively. A terminus will be located under the West Kowloon Cultural District and parallel to the West Kowloon Station. The high-speed rail will not share its tracks with the West Rail Line and the Northern Link. The tracks are designed to support future operations which include frequent services and linking Hong Kong with other Chinese major cities at 250-350 km/h. However, the actual speed in the Hong Kong Section can hardly exceed 200 km/h because a tunnel section in Shenzhen is only designed for any speed below 200 km/h.

The proposal was submitted by MTR in June 2007 and the Hong Kong Section is expected to be completed in 2014/2015, which will be 4 years behind the progress of the Mainland Section.

Northern Link

The Northern Link will provide a cross-boundary link for the West Rail Line and create a new railway corridor between the West Rail Line and the East Rail Line in northern New Territories. The completion of the project is likely to be deferred to 2020 because the government will not build two dedicated tracks for both the Express Rail Link and this less urgent project at the same time.

North Island Line

North Island Line involves the merging of the Island Line with Tung Chung Line and Tseung Kwan O Line. Its feasibility mainly depends on the development along the new coastline of the Victoria Harbour. The completion of the project was deferred to beyond 2020.

Long Term Possibilities

Some rail schemes were suggested in the [http://www.hyd.gov.hk/eng/public/publications/rds/doc/rds.pdf Railway Development Strategy 2000] and they should be further investigated if planning parameters change significantly. For example, the East-West Kowloon Link would provide a shortcut between Mong Kok and Kwun Tong while the Chek Lap Kok Link would provide a path between the Airport and Tuen Mun.

Outsourcing

The MTR Corporation is planning to outsource its services centres of 14 stations on the Island Line. Around 100 employees will be arranged to work at the Disneyland Resort Line and the AsiaWorld-Expo station. Services centres on the new stations of Tseung Kwan O Line are already outsourced when it started its service.

References