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The KCR Light Rail is one of the four systems of the KCR network in Hong Kong. It services the northwestern New Territories, especially such locations as Tuen Mun, Yuen Long, and Tin Shui Wai.
It runs on 1435mm track gauge (standard gauge), with direct current 750V.
History
Planning and commencement
When Tuen Mun was developed in the 1970s, the government had set aside space for laying rail tracks. There was uncertainty as to which company would be commissioned to built the train line, and in 1982 Hong Kong Tramways showed interest in building the system and running double-decker trams on it. Finally, the company was forced to abandon the project. Later that year, the KCRC decided to build the system. After some research, construction commenced in 1985.By that time, Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB) had developed its own network in Tuen Mun and Yuen Long, and there were about 10 routes serving within the district internally, most of them were profitable. However, the government introduced the concept of the "Light Rail Service Area" in both districts, forcing the KMB to withdraw all internal bus services in favour of the Light Rail. It also forced the KMB to impose boarding and alighting restrictions for external routes. It was decided that services between town centres and settlements would be provided solely by the Light Rail, while feeder buses operated by the KCRC would connect remote sites to the network, replacing KMB's equivalent services where applicable.
The system was completed and fully operational on 18 September 1988. It consisted of two big and three small loops serving most of the public housing estates in northern Tuen Mun. Three branches: one to On Ting Estate in the southeast, one to the Tuen Mun ferry pier in the southwest, and another northern branch all the way into the town of Yuen Long along Castle Peak Road. It was then known as Light Rail Transit, or LRT, and is also called as the North-west Railway according to the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation Ordinance.
The system was divided into five fare zones, making it the only public transportation system in Hong Kong with such zoning. The feeder buses have fares independent of these zones, but provide discounts when passengers interchange between these buses and Light Rail. 70 single-deck tram units were manufactured in Melbourne and Brisbane, Australia by Comeng, and shipped to Hong Kong for the seven tram routes in the system. Three of the routes were to Yuen Long and the others were confined to Tuen Mun.
Extensions
The system's first extension came for the southern and eastern parts of Tuen Mun. The eastern extension branches off the main line south of Siu Hong station and crosses the river that runs through Tuen Mun immediately with a flyover. The line then runs along Castle Peak Road to a road north of the town centre, where it climbs to another flyover and rejoins the main route. The northern end of this extension is still the only non-triangular junction in the entire system.The southern extension mainly consists of a route linking On Ting and Ferry Pier, on the newly reclaimed land near the river mouth of Tuen Mun River, known as "Mouse Island" by local people. A short spur line is also built from the extension to another terminus at Sam Shing Estate, located near Castle Peak Bay. Three Light Rail routes were diverted, and one feeder bus route cancelled as a result of these changes.
Tin Shui Wai was originally fish ponds, but was developed as a residential town in the early 1990s. With the increase of internal commuter traffic demand, the Light Rail built a spur line north of Hung Shui Kiu station that opened in 1993, with four stations serving the initial housing areas of the town. The area was further developed in the next few years, and the spur line was extended by two stations: Chestwood and Tin Shui Wai in 1995 (Tin Shui Wai was renamed as Tin Wing after the opening of West Rail). Two Light Rail routes were established, one to Tuen Mun and one to Yuen Long.
The age of West Rail
The system remained essentially unchanged until the completion of the West Rail in December of 2003. Many changes were made, mainly around the new railway stations. The KCRC designed most railway stations in the Light Rail area to interchange with the new West Rail line. The idea was to encourage passengers to use the West Rail instead of the Light Rail for longer journeys to free up LRT vehicles for passengers making shorter journeys. For this purpose, an interchange discount system was launched with the introduction of the West Rail system, meaning that passengers would pay no more (and in some cases less) to travel on the West Rail instead of the Light Rail for the main part of their journey. Although this most recent extension is the largest ever, no new trams were purchased. And although rearrangements were made, some infrequent and unreliable services resulted, causing passengers to blame the lack of trams and poor arrangement of new services. The KCRC has since modified the inside of some trams to allow more standing room for passengers during peak hours. They have also several route alterations to arrange them better.Stations
See also: Full station list of KCRC lines
The stations of this line are:
Current service pattern
There are currently nine routes serving the Light Rail system:
- 505: Sam Shing to Siu Hong (via Leung King, Shan King, Kin On, and On Ting)
- 507: Tin King to Ferry Pier (via Tai Hing and On Ting)
- 610: Yuen Long to Ferry Pier (via Tai Hing and Tsing Shan Tsuen)
- 614: Yuen Long to Ferry Pier (via Fung Tei and On Ting)
- 615: Yuen Long to Ferry Pier (via Leung King, Ming Kum, and Tsing Shan Tsuen)
- 705: Around the Tin Shui Wai loop anticlockwise
- 706: Around the Tin Shui Wai loop clockwise
- 751: Tin Yat to Yau Oi (via Chestwood, Affluence, and Choy Yee Bridge)
- 761: Yuen Long to Tin Wing (via Wetland Park and Tin Shui)
After the opening of West Rail, the demand for Light Rail services between Siu Hong and Yuen Long decreased. Therefore, half of 614 and 615 services were changed to short-distance services operating between Siu Hong and Ferry Pier, numbered 614P and 615P respectively.
The following routes run only during peak hours.
- 761P: Tin Yat to Yuen Long
- 751P: Tin Yat to Tin Shui Wai
Fares
The Light Rail is the only public transport system in Hong Kong to have fare zones. These fare zones apply only to passengers purchasing single-ride tickets from ticketing machinese at LRT stops. Since the introduction of Octopus cards, however, passengers have a choice of ticketing options. All fares indicated below are for adults, while children and the elderly usually pay the concessionary fare, which is half the adult fare.
Single-Ride Tickets
There are six fare zones — 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 5A — for passengers purchasing single-ride tickets in tram stations. A trip between two zones costs HK$4, HK$4.70 for three zones, and journeys further than three zones costs HK$5.8. Zone 5A was introduced solely for the latest extension in Tin Shui Wai, and both zones 5 and 5A are only connected to Zone 4. Therefore travelling between zones 5 and 5A is considered as travelling through three zones.Octopus Cards
Octopus card fares are calculated based on the minimum number of stations travelled (from origin to destination stations), rather than the number of fare zones travelled through. All stations have Octopus card entry and exit processors at the entrances to and exits from platforms. Passengers may enter the system after placing their Octopus card on the reader of an orange-coloured 'Entry Processor' reader. This action is known as 'validation'. At this point, HK$6 is deducted from the Octopus card. When the passenger completes their journey, they place their card on a dark-green coloured 'Exit Processor'. At this time, the difference between the HK$5.80 intitially deducted, and the value of the fare travelled is refunded to the card. This design ensures that passengers re-validate their cards upon exit, otherwise they must pay the maximum fare of HK$5.80. A third type of processor exists at most platforms. Light-blue in colour, it is an 'Enquiry Processor', and allows passengers to check the balance on their card, along with the 10 most recent Octopus transactions, and, in the case of Personalised Octopus Cards, the number of Light Rail credits accumulated.Passengers using Personalised Octopus Cards are able to participate in the Light Rail Bonus Scheme. Adults who spend HK$30 in 6 consecutive days, or children who spend HK$15 over the same period get an automatic credit of $HK3 and $HK1.5 respectively. Octopus card holders with student identity stored in the card can enjoy a rebate of $3.4 when he spend HK$12 in 4 consecutive days.
See also
External link
"KCR Light Rail"