Category: Public Transport
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On Thursday I was on the southbound KCR (sorry, that’s the MTR East Rail Line) when the train came to a halt in the Beacon Hill Tunnel just north of Kowloon Tong station. Cue the usual announcement about a train being in the platform at the next station, but it soon became apparent that this…
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Last time I was in London, I didn’t swipe my card correctly and so I got charged for several “incomplete journeys”. I filled in an online form explaining what had happened, and received a refund a day or two later. Great service. Then, back in Hong Kong I went to meet my wife on an…
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The MTR “train trip planner” recommends that for early and late departures from East Rail stations to the airport you should go via Hung Hom, Nam Cheong & Tsing Yi. This seems like bad advice, because it requires you to use two of the worst interchanges on the MTR: At Nam Cheong, you can stroll…
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From Hong Kong Free Press: MTR Airport Express to increase fares for the first time in its history in June Hong Kong’s Airport Express MTR line is set to increase fares by 10.3 percent in June – the first fee hike since it came into operation in 1998. According to a Tuesday Legislative Council document,…
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More misinformation from the MTR: “The Sha Tin to Central Link (SCL) is a strategic railway line that stretches from Tai Wai to Admiralty”. It really isn’t! What they are actually doing is linking up the Ma On Shan line and West Rail (through East Kowloon, in brown on the graphic) and extending East Rail…
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Confusing (wrong) information on the signs above the platform screen doors on the MTR’s Kwun Tong Line: You don’t change at Mong Kok to go to Tsuen Wan – for that you’ll want Prince Edward. Likewise, if you want to change to the Tsuen Wan line towards Central you should do that at Mong Kok. …
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Interesting article from the BBC about red minibuses in Hong Kong. Things I already knew: red minibuses don’t follow fixed routes, and are very dangerous. Things I learned from this: red minibuses first appeared in 1967; green minibuses started in 1980; the government wants to phase out red minibuses and replace them with the more…
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Well, not really – the Airport Express is generally very good. The trains now terminate at Asiaworld-Expo, which is odd for an airport express, but it brings the MTR some additional revenue and normally it doesn’t create a problem Except when, after a concert, the trains arrive at the airport full of passengers. That means…
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I’m always interested in other views of the MTR, including this one: hong kong metro: five transfers?? I jumped onto Google looking for hotels that would be convenient to the rail line from the airport. Yikes! Is it my imagination, or am I seeing that: Only three stations in the city are on the Airport…
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The MTR is a world-class public transport system. The passengers – not so much. Leading to everyday frustrations, with the occasional moment of madness. Case one – trying to get off a crowded train. Doors open. I say “Mh Goi”, but no-one moves, so I have to force my way out through a crowd of…
Ordinary Gweilo 