Category: Public Transport
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The extension of the East Rail Line to Admiralty opened 3 years ago (in May 2022). Those with a long memory will recall that this was part of the "Sha Tin to Central link" that I have written about a few times, starting back in March 2008 (Sensible changes) and, yes, I might have become…
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Back in 2014, the SCMP reported on the “painfully slow process” of installing platform screen doors on what were the KCR East Rail and Ma On Shan line (now the MTR East Rail Line and Tsuen Ma Line). They returned to the subject in 2023 (paywall) and RTHK reported in February 2024 that work would…
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How it's supposed to work: Passengers exit the train People board the train Announcement that doors are closing Doors close Train departs Everyone is happy What sometimes (rarely) happens Announcement is made whilst people are still exiting the train Doors close whilst people (me) are boarding The problem with (1) is that it causes people…
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Since my last post, the government has announced changes to the Joy You scheme (so I was wrong): Maximum of 240 journeys per person per month at the subsidised rate. Users will be charged 20% of the fare if it's over HK$10. The government is calling this the HK$2 flat rate cum 80 percent discount…
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There has been some controversy recently about the HK$2 flat fare for the elderly on public transport. This was introduced in 2012 for people aged 65 or older, and then extended in 2022 to those aged 60 or over. This report says that the scheme costs around HK$4 billion per year (roughly US$500 million). That's…
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I have previously written about Wrong MTR station names and the Hong Kong Free Press has an interesting article on a similar theme Foreign influence Part 1: Lost in translation [..] Mong Kok is another prime example. The former coastal region was named after the overgrown silvergrass found in the area 芒角 mong4 gok3, (‘corner of…
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The full Tuen Ma line will open on June 27. SCMP predictably came up with a strange headline: Hong Kong MTR: key section of costly Sha Tin-Central link to open by June 27 after repeated delays A key stretch of the long-overdue Sha Tin to Central link, Hong Kong’s most expensive rail project, will fully…
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First they put up a new display screen with the times of the next few trains and other useful information (to replace the old smaller displays). Then they installed a large metal sign that largely blocks views of the screen (from one direction). This new sign marks what will be the front of the 9-car…
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Rather confusingly, there are several red taxis driving around Hong Kong dressed up as green taxis. In Hong Kong we have red “urban taxis” that have higher fares and can operate everywhere except the south part of Lantau island. Green taxis can only operate in the more northerly parts of the New Territories (such as…
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Many MTR stations have really confusing “English” names on the official maps. 尖沙咀 appears as “Tsim Sha Tsui" on signs. Good luck trying to pronounce that – and if your valiant effort is “Sim Sha Chewy” you won’t be understood by locals because it's actually more like "Jim Sa Joy". 紅磡 is shown as “Hung…
Ordinary Gweilo 