Enlightenment for Hong Kong from the operation of the MTR Sha-Central Line and the New London Line in the same month

The cross-sea section of the East Rail Line of the MTR opened to traffic last Sunday (May 15), allowing residents of the New Territories East to travel to Hong Kong Island by rail. In recent years, the railway expansion project has come to an end.

While arranging the opening of the new local line, the MTR is also preparing for the operation of the London Underground's Elizabeth Line (Elizabeth Line) which will open to traffic on Tuesday (24th).

What the two lines have in common is that the MTR operates on a limited-time basis, and it can be said that the same route was obtained through bidding competition.

However, MTR won the bidding competition for the Queen Elizabeth Line, and KCRC beat the MTR to win the contract for the Shatin-Central Line, which includes the cross-sea section of the East Rail Line.

After the merger, the MTR monopolized the railway market, and its internal management was in a mess. A series of mistakes and overruns occurred during the construction of the SCL, which led to delays in opening to traffic. The management also repeatedly concealed the public.

If Hong Kong introduces the concept of open operation rights in London and other places, will it bring greater benefits to local railway services?

Queen Elizabeth II visited London's Paddington Station on May 17 and held an unveiling ceremony for the new railway line "Queen Elizabeth Line" named after her, during which a station staff explained to her how to use the ticket machines.

(Associated Press)

Before discussing whether it will be better, let me explain that Hong Kong will not have companies other than the MTR to operate the existing railway network until after 2028 at the earliest. This is because the existing routes ensure that the MTR has the right to operate for a long time.

In fact, it is rumored that the merger of the two railways from December 2007, strictly speaking, the KCRC grants the MTR the right to operate the service, and the term is 50 years from that month.

The MTR first pays KCRC a fixed fee, and then splits the account to KCRC based on the train service revenue.

The two railways signed the "Operation Amendment Agreement", which stipulates train service arrangements and service performance requirements, such as frequency, service time, passenger capacity, punctuality of journeys and train services, and reliability of station equipment, etc. It also stipulates the MTR Trains are designed, constructed, operated and maintained safely.

As for the SCL and XRL, both KCRC and MTR have entered into a 10-year Supplementary Service Operating Rights Agreement, and the content of the "Operation Amendment Agreement" signed by the two lines with the government is similar to that of the old lines. Pay additional operating fees.

After the expiry of the right to operate the two-line service, the MTR shall return the property under the right of operation to KCRC.

However, because the SCL agreement contains a clause that "the government, MTR and KCRC will start exclusive negotiations before the expiry of the agreement", but the high-speed rail operating in 2018 does not, which means that MTR's high-speed rail service operation rights will expire in 2028. The chance of being replaced is slightly greater than that of the sand center line.

Therefore, in terms of the existing network, the high-speed rail is more likely to have operational bidding in the future.

As for the new railway, the government implemented the construction of the northern metropolitan area last year. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said that the Northern Link would be built by the MTR, and that the railway linking Hung Shui Bridge and Qianhai could attract competition from new builders, but did not make a statement on opening the right to operate.

However, building a railway is more complicated than operating a railway. If the Chief Executive can connect with builders other than the MTR, I believe he can also accept operators other than the MTR.

The cross-sea section of the East Rail Line of the MTR opened to traffic on May 15, and the crowds of "greedy new" visitors subsided, and returned to normal on May 18.

(Photo by Luo Junhao)

The society once thought that it would be fine without competition. At that time, the MTR rarely made mistakes, and the one-stop arrangement of railway construction, assets, and operation, coupled with government supervision, could reduce internal management problems.

However, the faulty construction of the high-speed rail and the Shatin-Central Line, the management concealed and shied away their responsibilities, coupled with the continuous failure of the signal system in recent years, the fare adjustment mechanism is contrary to the public sentiment, and the government has asked the MTR to relieve the responsibilities of the relevant project management team after many years of trouble.

There are voices suggesting that Hong Kong should re-introduce more operators to compare the best through competition.

So, what impact will the opening of operating rights have on the operation of Hong Kong's railways?

For details, please read the 318th issue of "Hong Kong 01" e-Weekly Newsletter (May 23, 2022) "