The MTR Corporation, Hong Kong’s railway operator, will offer a day of half-priced fares across its network following a major service disruption on the Tseung Kwan O line last Thursday, which stranded thousands of commuters during a five-hour shutdown. The move comes as part of a HK$19 million passenger rebate program prompted by the incident and two earlier disruptions in February and April, but it has drawn criticism for not directly addressing those most affected.
The Tseung Kwan O line, a vital artery for commuters in eastern Hong Kong, ground to a halt during the evening rush hour due to power and signaling failures. Lawmaker Michael Tien, a former chairman of the Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation, questioned why the MTR could not switch to manual operations to allow trains to use the single available track for bidirectional service. The railway company cited limitations in the line’s outdated signaling system as the reason.
“They told me they couldn’t go manual because the section was still running on the old signaling system,” Tien said on RTHK’s In the Chamber program. “I don’t find that acceptable.”
Tien pointed out that other lines, such as the Tsuen Wan and Island lines, which also rely on older signaling systems, have managed to switch to manual operations during past disruptions, allowing trains to operate at reduced speeds. “The design is that, once the automated system isn’t safe enough, you can go manual,” he said. “In the past two or three years, we didn’t see entire lines shut down like this.”
The government has mandated that the MTR provide over HK$19 million in rebates to passengers due to the recent disruptions. As part of this compensation, the MTR will hold a half-price fare day on a yet-to-be-announced Saturday or Sunday, covering all lines across its network.
However, Tien criticized the blanket approach to the rebate, arguing it fails to adequately compensate those who were most inconvenienced by the Tseung Kwan O line’s shutdown. “I find it a bit funny that passengers across the entire network will benefit when it was mostly those on the Tseung Kwan O line who bore the brunt,” he said.
The MTR has not yet responded to Tien’s remarks but has faced increasing scrutiny over its handling of service disruptions. The half-price fare day aims to ease passenger frustration, but for many commuters who endured hours of delays, questions remain about the railway’s operational resilience.
