[Fugitive Offenders Regulations] MTR adjusts service at least 10 degrees upon police request

Social News

Written by: Huang Weilun

2019-12-12 20:51

The anti-revision storm continued for more than half a year. MTR was repeatedly involved in the demonstrations and was damaged. From time to time, it is necessary to close the station early or arrange for the train to "fly". After reviewing the wave of demonstrations, as of October 1, the MTR's vehicle arrangements as of October 1, MTR said at least 10 times that it "needs to close the station or fly to the station" in response to police requests. After October, the MTR Corporation stated for several days "after the risk with the relevant government departments" and suspended train services early until the normal collection time was resumed earlier this month.

The Police's Public Relations Division responded that in order to ensure public order and safety, the police will conduct risk assessments for various large-scale public events and take appropriate crowd management measures in accordance with the situation, including requiring MTRCL to cooperate in the arrangement of train services. Police also pointed out that MTRCL would also conduct a self-assessment before arranging bus services.

MTR often closes stations early in large-scale mass events, and demonstrators are dissatisfied with this. (Photo / Photo by Zhang Haowei)

During the demonstration, the MTR closed the station several times and checked the information. As of October 1, 10 of them were closed by the MTR when it was announced that it was requested by the police. For example, at 8:30 pm on June 12 Admiralty Station will be closed and Yuen Long Station will be closed at 11.55pm on July 21.

After October, the MTR's statement changed, especially during the anti-masking law demonstration on October 4th, when a number of MTR stations were damaged, heavy rail services were suspended on October 5th, and MTR For several days, it failed to return to normal service, and said that “after taking risks with relevant government departments”, in order to free up more time to repair the station, the service will be ended. Many of them will be “closed” at 10pm and 11pm ". Until December 1, except for the university station, other heavy railway stations resumed normal service.

A document from the Legislative Council's Railway Matters Group at the end of last month revealed the principles of MTR's transportation arrangements during public events. It mentioned that MTR would communicate with relevant government departments, including the Transport Bureau, Transport Department and the police. Under the premise of safety, temporarily close part of the station entrances and exits or the entire station. The document mentioned that in some emergencies or emergencies, MTR even adjusted its services within a short period of time without notice.

Regarding the police's request for the MTR customs station from time to time, Lin Zhuoting, a member of the Legislative Council's Railway Matters Group, believes that since MTR was "rolled in" by the People's Daily to criticize and assist the demonstrators, its decision has obviously not only been based on the state of the traffic, but has been subject to police. He also stated that even if the MTR had requested the police to arrange for a special train to pick up the citizens of the station after the train "stops", it still affected a large number of citizens and prevented some people from getting off at the station and returning home.

Lin Zhuoting believes that since MTR was "named" by the People's Daily to criticize and assist the demonstrators, its decision-making has been restricted by the police. (Profile picture)

On July 21, the police requested the MTR to close the Yuen Long Station at 11.55 pm. Lin Zhuoting believed that there was a big problem with the police's decision, because after the station was closed, the people in white opened the iron gates and chased the people. He went on to point out that the police should be stationed inside the station to prevent further attacks by people in white.

Lin Weiqiang, chairman of the Federation of Railway Trade Unions affiliated to the Federation of Trade Unions, said that MTR services do need to be adjusted if required by the police, but whether the arrangements are reasonable depends on the reasons behind each case and it is difficult to comment. He believes that no matter whether it is MTR or police arrangements, he believes that the motive behind it is to ensure the safety of passengers and employees. "It is useless to drive if there is safety."

Lin Weiqiang (second from left) said that he believes the arrangements are for safety. (Profile picture)

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The Police's Public Relations Division responded that in order to ensure public order and safety, the police will conduct risk assessments for various large-scale public events and take appropriate crowd management measures in accordance with the situation, including requiring MTRCL to cooperate in the arrangement of train services. Police continue to point out that MTRCL will also conduct a self-assessment before arranging bus services.

Fugitive Ordinance