Hong Kong MTR - Mass Transit Railway

The Mass Transit Railway or MTR (dei tit in cantonese which means "underground railway) is the primary mode of mass public transportation in Hong Kong. It is the biggest rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong.

Other railway systems includes the Kowloon Canton Railway KCR and the Light Rail Transit LRT in Yuenlong.

Since 1979 Hong Kong MTR service has expanded to seven lines and 53 stations mostly under 91 kilometers of road and water.

The popularity of the Hong Kong MTR precedes itself as one of the most advanced mass transport systems in the world. The system averages 2.46 million journeys each day. Mass public transportation is essential in Hong Kong which is already one of the most advanced and busiest cities in Asia.

The population of Hong Kong is reaching almost 7,000,000; all of these contained in just 1000 square kilometers. This makes Hong Kong one of the most densely populated areas in the world, and personal space and transportation are daily issues.

Added to these figures are the constant inflow of immigrants, businessmen tourists entering Hong Kong.

Hong Kong MTR is proving very popular among the locals because it is cheap and efficient.

For example, a taxi ride from Tsing Yi in the New Territories to Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island would costs around HK$200, while the same trip on the MTR costs HK$11.80, and HK$5.70 on concessionary fare.

The coming of the contactless electronic card - the Octopus contactless smart card system - into the MTR system in September of was the ultimate in convenience.

The Hong Kong MTR is very safe. Thanks to various campaigns and activities to help ensure that the Hong Kong MTR is a safe system to travel on. Poster campaigns displaying information on topics such as escalator safety are a common sight in all MTR stations.

Announcements are made regularly as safety reminders to traveling passengers. Usually in Cantonese, Mandarin, and British English.

Bylaws have been recently introduced to deter potentially dangerous actions on the MTR, such as the ban of flammable goods on the MTR and rushing into trains when the doors are closing.

There are also police officers on patrol inside the trains and train stations and police posts are available at selected stations.

Platform screen doors (PSDs) have been installed in the Tung Chung Line, Airport Express, and Tseung Kwan O Line stations, with the exception of Quarry Bay Station. These platform doors on the Hong Kong MTR stations prevent people from falling onto the rails.

Economic considerations were also important, for the platform doors was to separate the stations from the tunnels, therefore, allowing substantial energy savings on air-conditioning and tunnel ventilation.

Automatic platform gates (APGs) are installed at the Sunny Bay and Disneyland Resort Stations. These gates only prevent people from falling onto the rails but they are only half the height of the PSDs.

It was only in June 2000 when the Hong Kong MTR Corporation begun to retrofit 2,960 pairs of platform screen doors at all 30 underground stations on the Kwun Tong Line, Tsuen Wan Line, and Island Line in a six year program.

This program made Hong Kong MTR the world's first railway to undertake the retrofitting of PSDs on an existing passenger-carrying. The program was completed in October 2005 one year ahead of schedule.

It was way back in the 1960s when the government already saw a need for the Hong Kong MTR. A solution was necessary for the exploding road as Hong Kong's economy continued to grow strongly.

British transport consultants Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates were appointed to study the transport system of Hong Kong, and this study led to the birth and construction of the now famous Hong Kong MTR or Mass Transit Railway.

Constructed and operated by MTR Corporation Limited, the Hong Kong MTR system has become today the most popular mode of public transport in Hong Kong.