Hong Kong MTR railway line
This article is about the east section of the South Island line which opened in 2016. For the proposed west section, see
South Island line (West)
.
The
South Island line
(
Chinese
:
南港島?
), is a rapid transit line of
Hong Kong
's
MTR
metro system
. This line connects the Hong Kong
business district
from
Admiralty station
to the
Southern District
of
Hong Kong Island
and the island of
Ap Lei Chau
, which was not served by any rail transport prior to the opening of the line.
[2]
Approved by the
Executive Council
in 2007,
[3]
the line commenced service on 28 December 2016.
[4]
The line is identified by light green on the MTR route map. The rolling stock of the South Island line is purpose-built for driverless operation, with trains being remotely controlled from the
Operations Control Centre
in
Tsing Yi
.
This line was known during planning and construction as the South Island line (East) to distinguish from
South Island line (West)
, which is still being planned.
History
[
edit
]
The initial proposal for the line was developed in 2002, and went through a number of changes, at times combined with the
West Island line
and
South Island line (West)
. The final alignment corresponds with "option B" of the
2005 revised scheme
, with no intermediate station at
Happy Valley
included, in order to reduce the travel time to the central business district.
Rolling stock
[
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]
MTR defines the railway as a
medium capacity system
. The final order for
rolling stock
for the new line consisted of 10 new three-car
MTR CNR Changchun EMUs
using steel wheels. These trains are externally similar to the new existing sets in service on the
Kwun Tong line
, but are fully
automatic and driverless
? the second such line in the MTR system after the
Disneyland Resort line
, and the third such line in Hong Kong.
[5]
However, every train has at least one staff for patrol in the traffic hour who is qualified to control the train manually according to the requirements of the
Fire Services Department
since the commencement of the line.
[6]
Trains operate with a frequency of three minutes during rush hour.
Alignment
[
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]
South Island line begins in tunnel at
Admiralty station
, an underground station connecting to the pre-existing
Tsuen Wan
and
Island
lines. From Admiralty the line travels southeastwards beneath
Mount Cameron
through the 3.2 km (2.0 mi)
Nam Fung Tunnel
, emerging into a covered viaduct at a site between the portal of
Aberdeen Tunnel
and
Gleneagles Hospital
, just before
Ocean Park station
.
The line then continues west on a
viaduct
through
Wong Chuk Hang
and
Staunton Creek
over
a nullah
, on which the
Wong Chuk Hang station
was built, and crosses
the channel
to the island of
Ap Lei Chau
on the
Aberdeen Channel Bridge
; after landing on Ap Lei Chau, the line enters a tunnel and continues to
Lei Tung
and South Horizons stations.
Stations
[
edit
]
This is a list of the
stations
on the South Island line.
List
Station concourses are staffless, except those of Admiralty and Ocean Park stations. Customers are required to solve ticket problems with this Self Service Point machine. To its left is the information counter, which provides travel and street information only.
The trains do not have driver cabs, allowing passengers to see through the windows in the ends of the trains.
The public car park underneath Ocean Park station.
Construction
[
edit
]
Construction progress
[
edit
]
Agreements for MTR South Island line and the Kwun Tong line extension were signed by the
Hong Kong government
and
MTR Corporation
on 18 May 2011.
[7]
In August 2012, drilling and blasting work began for constructing the Nam Fung Tunnel, between Admiralty and Ocean Park stations.
[8]
The line was built by a
Leighton Asia
?
John Holland Group
joint venture.
[9]
[10]
On 9 December 2013, structural work for Ocean Park station was completed.
[11]
[12]
The first 3-car trainset arrived at MTR Siu Ho Wan Depot on 19 February 2014.
[13]
The project was 78% complete by late September 2014, and Nam Fung Tunnel was broken through on 17 October.
[8]
In 2015, trial runs began between Wong Chuk Hang and South Horizons stations. 84% of construction work was completed by the end of February 2015. Work in Lei Tung station was prolonged by geological problems.
[14]
Delayed opening
[
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]
The opening of the South Island line was originally planned for 2015. On 21 May 2014, an informant told Apple Daily that the commencement date of the line would be postponed by one and a half years. MTR Corporation asserted it would be opened as expected. Yet, the Transport and Housing Bureau revealed the delay of construction work and demanded MTR to review the commencement. Members of the Legislative Council and District Council criticised MTR for hiding the project's progress from the public and demanded a progress report at the Council's meeting.
[15]
Eight days later at the South District Council meeting, MTRC announced the delay was caused by the expansion work of Admiralty station. High-density building, underground public facilities and the existing Admiralty station would prolong the work progress, as "safety comes first". However, the claimed 2015 opening date remained unchanged.
[16]
In November 2014, a revised opening date of December 2016 was announced.
[17]
In October 2016, MTRC chairman
Frederick Ma
warned that the opening of the South Island line could be delayed by three more months.
[18]
However, on 10 November 2016, he announced the South Island line would open by the end of 2016, saying the engineering team overcame the many challenges in expanding Admiralty Station.
[19]
Finally, MTRC chief executive Lincoln Leong officially declared the South Island line would begin operation on 28 December 2016.
[4]
Commencement
[
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]
On 28 December, before South Horizons station opened, many residents and enthusiasts gathered outside the entrance. MTR managerial officials, including CEO Lincoln Leong, welcomed passengers and rode on the first departure. The first train departed from South Horizons station at 5:55 am, five minutes earlier than usual. After 11 hours of operation, there had been over 92,000 passenger journeys.
[20]
However, the day after the line opened, an electrical fault triggered power outages at 2:15 pm, causing lighting systems, escalators, elevators, and fare gates to stop working. The driverless trains were switched into manual mode in order to maintain service. Normal operation resumed after half an hour.
[21]
Interchange stations
[
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]
At Admiralty, a new
island platform
was built under
Harcourt Garden
.
[22]
Transfer passages connect the new station area with the older
Tsuen Wan line
and
Island line
platforms, as well as the
East Rail line
platforms.
At Wong Chuk Hang, the platform structure was planned to be a double island platform with three tracks (like
Choi Hung station
). South Island line (West) trains would use the centre track while South Island line trains would use those on each side, allowing for convenient
cross-platform interchanges
. However, according to the final plan, any future South Island line (West) platforms were to be built above the existing platforms.
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
Further reading
[
edit
]
Papers from Government and Legislature
Press releases
External links
[
edit
]
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Rail
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Non-rail
service
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Operated solely by trains from mainland China
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Stations
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Rolling stock
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History
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Related articles
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