Tuen Ma line

The line presently starts at Kai Tak station in Kai Tak, and ends at Wu Kai Sha station in Wu Kai Sha, Ma On Shan. It is 17 kilometres (11 mi) long with twelve stations, and a complete journey lasts 29 minutes in either direction. There are two interchange stations: one with the East Rail line at Tai Wai, and another at Diamond Hill with the Kwun Tong line. The maintenance depot, built by Gammon Construction, is located south of Tai Wai station.[5][6] Upon the opening of the full line, the interchanges and facilities of the present West Rail line, including the Kowloon Southern Link extension opened in 2009, will also serve the Tuen Ma line, and Hung Hom will become a major interchange for passengers crossing the harbour to Hong Kong Island.

Most of the original Ma On Shan line (between Tai Wai and Wu Kai Sha) is built on a viaduct on land which had been reserved for the purpose of a railway from the outset of the development of Ma On Shan New Town.[7] However, the section between Shek Mun and Tai Shui Hang is at ground level, as it is located between the carriageways of Tate's Cairn Highway, along with the section between Tai Wai to Hin Keng, which is also partially on an embankment and parallel to the East Rail line. The remaining section to Kai Tak is underground, as will be much of the remaining section to Hung Hom. Construction methods predominantly include tunnel boring machines and cut-and-cover, though the Lion Rock Tunnel between Hin Keng and the Ma Chai Hang Recreation Ground was constructed using the drill-and-blast method.

While road and rail traffic in Hong Kong move on the left, the operating section of the Tuen Ma line is an exception, as trains move on the right. This allows the southbound tracks of this line and the East Rail line to lie opposite each other at Tai Wai, such that cross-platform interchange could be provided there. This design was to speed up passenger interchange between the East Rail line and Tuen Ma line to Kowloon during the morning commute, although the reverse transfer would require going down to the concourse level and back up again. This layout will be maintained as far as To Kwa Wan, which will have a split platform layout to allow the tracks to switch sides and adopt the left-hand running used on the West Rail line.

Since its opening as part of the KCR system, the interchange station at Tai Wai has not had ticket gates between the Ma On Shan Rail and East Rail platforms, unlike at the former KCR system's interchanges with the MTR system; a trip from either line to the other counted as one ride. There was no direct connection between these two lines and the West Rail while they were part of the KCR network. In June 2016, using the ubiquitous Octopus card, the fare for a single trip on the line ranged from HK$3.7 to HK$5.3, depending on the distance travelled. The fare from Ma On Shan to East Rail line stations in Kowloon ranged from HK$5.3 to HK$10.2.[8]

For much of its existence, the Ma On Shan line was, in the Hong Kong context, classified as a "medium-capacity system"; however, it is capable of passenger volumes up to 32,000 passengers per hour per direction (PPHPD),[9] which is comparable to the passenger capacity of a full rapid transit or "metro" system.[10] Furthermore, the line has been upgraded to the standard of a full-capacity system in anticipation of the Sha Tin to Central Link, which will extend it to the heart of Kowloon and result in a merger with the existing, full-capacity West Rail line.

KCRC initially ordered 18 sets of SP1950 trains, built by Kinki Sharyo, running in four-car configurations when serviced commenced on the line; they have all since been converted to eight cars. The train is the same model as the SP1900 sets used on the East Rail and West Rail lines, which runs on those lines with twelve-car and eight-car configurations respectively (previously seven cars on the latter, though all will be converted to eight cars and used on the entire line following its completion). They were the only trains in use until March 2017, when newly built eight-car East West line trains, manufactured by CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles, entered service on the line. Both of these models have a maximum running speed of 160 km/h (99 mph), but only reach a maximum service speed of 120 km/h (75 mph) on the long section between Hin Keng and Diamond Hill stations; they reach 70 km/h (43 mph) between most other stations. Unlike the trains on the East Rail line, there are no first-class compartments. All trains are serviced at Tai Wai depot and are equipped with the SelTrac IS moving-block signalling system for train protection, with provision for upgrading to the radio-based SelTrac CBTC at a later stage to increase capacity.[11]

The first two converted 8-car SP1900 trains were introduced on 15 January 2017.[12] During the transition period with both 4-car and 8-car trains in service, passengers had to pay attention to the platform LCD screens and announcements to queue at the right part of the platforms.[13] Since December 2017, the line has been run fully by 8-car trains and all stations retrofitted with automatic platform gates identical to those installed at elevated stations on MTR's own lines.[14]

Geographically accurate map of the Tuen Ma line Phase 1.

Before the merger of the two major Hong Kong railway operators, the MTR Corporation (MTRC) and the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) rail networks in 2007, both the West Rail (opened in 2003) and the Ma On Shan Rail (opened in 2004) were operated by KCRC. Both railways were envisaged to be extended in the near future; hence, Ma On Shan line platforms were built with reserved structures for elongation at a later date.

Both MTRC and KCRC independently submitted their own proposals to the Hong Kong government for developing the Sha Tin to Central Link (SCL) by extending their own existing networks. After numerous revisions of their proposals, the government eventually approved the scheme by KCRC, which involved joining the West Rail and the Ma On Shan Rail via the Wong Tai Sin and Kowloon City districts (the phase 1 East West Corridor), and extending East Rail to the Hong Kong Island central business district (phase 2 North South Corridor).

The info plate at Ho Man Tin station which has been removed.

After the 2007 network merger, operations of all transport services (East Rail, West Rail, Ma On Shan Rail, Light Rail, feeder buses and Guangzhou–Kowloon through train) of the KCRC have been leased to the MTRC for 50 years. The MTRC also rebranded the three commuter railways to bear the suffix "line" (East Rail line, West Rail line and Ma On Shan line) like their own railways. Subsequently the approved SCL schemes fall into the hands of the MTRC.

The construction of East West Corridor, which largely followed an alignment proposed by the MTRC in the 1970s as the East Kowloon line and later shelved, began in August 2016. At the time, it was unclear how MTRC would name the new lines or whether they would retain the project codenames "East West Corridor" and "North South Corridor"; the word "corridor" would set a precedent in the naming convention of MTR lines. Speculation of "East West Line" arose when a photograph of an info plate printed with "EWL" (東西綫) at Ho Man Tin station while it was under construction surfaced. The plate was removed before the opening of the station that year as part of the Kwun Tong line extension to Whampoa. MTRC eventually announced on 25 May 2018 that the finalised name is the Tuen Ma line.

The following is a list of the stations on the Tuen Ma line.