Transit in Hong Kong

[Transit geek]

On ‎2018‎-‎02‎-‎10 at 10:43 AM, Orion V said:

KMB Route 872. Volvo Super Olypmian Wright Explorer.

To be specific, the vehicle series number is AVW78 (entered service in 2004-5) and its licence plate is LX9991.  Those who can read Chinese might want to check out the specs: http://www.buscess.com/chassis/view/LX9991/cp1

The crash took place on a rather straight section of Tai Po Road right besides Tai Po Kau Park, in a place that has seen its fair share of accidents. http://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/2132874/passengers-claim-bus-driver-was-throwing-tantrum

[wchu94]

Another bus accident, now in Hong Kong Island: "Seven hurt in collision between a bus and a tram" http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1381195-20180216.htm

 

Update on KMB:

Part-time driver in fatal Hong Kong bus crash did not drive route in training, KMB admits: https://www.hongkongfp.com/2018/02/16/part-time-driver-fatal-hong-kong-bus-crash-not-drive-route-training-kmb-admits/

KMB is now stopped offering shifts to part-time drivers after the deadly accident: http://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1381070-20180215.htm

[Orion V]

I know MTR is doing signal upgrades on some of the older lines to something similar to ATO (like TTC) so I'm wondering how do they do it without major closures like what TTC is doing almost every weekend?

[leylandvictory2]

7 hours ago, Orion V said:

I know MTR is doing signal upgrades on some of the older lines to something similar to ATO (like TTC) so I'm wondering how do they do it without major closures like what TTC is doing almost every weekend?

perhaps different company doing the installation.  HOng Kong has Octopus card.  Their system works great and the Presto on the other hand.....

[Transit geek]

Hong Kong can certainly look to nearby Singapore. It too is upgrading its oldest MRT lines from Westinghouse fixed-block to Thales SelTrac moving-block CBTC. Since SG has more English-speaking railfans than HK does, there are a bunch of excellent resources by which to keep informed, such as this one.

https://mothership.sg/2017/07/the-very-long-story-behind-why-there-have-been-will-still-be-so-many-delays-on-the-north-south-line/

The takeaway is that Thales does all its work for three hours every night. It is not hard to infer that they are doing the same to the MTR as they do to the MRT.

[Orion V]

17 hours ago, leylandvictory2 said:

perhaps different company doing the installation.  HOng Kong has Octopus card.  Their system works great and the Presto on the other hand.....

To be fair, the Octopus has 2 decades of history so all the clinks have been worked out.

 

17 hours ago, Transit geek said:

Hong Kong can certainly look to nearby Singapore. It too is upgrading its oldest MRT lines from Westinghouse fixed-block to Thales SelTrac moving-block CBTC. Since SG has more English-speaking railfans than HK does, there are a bunch of excellent resources by which to keep informed, such as this one.

https://mothership.sg/2017/07/the-very-long-story-behind-why-there-have-been-will-still-be-so-many-delays-on-the-north-south-line/

The takeaway is that Thales does all its work for three hours every night. It is not hard to infer that they are doing the same to the MTR as they do to the MRT.

So why does TTC have to close weekends to do the ATO when the others don't have to?

[jordankcw]

On 2/25/2018 at 12:27 PM, Orion V said:

To be fair, the Octopus has 2 decades of history so all the clinks have been worked out.

 

So why does TTC have to close weekends to do the ATO when the others don't have to?

MTR for starters has a long down time than the TTC, that might give them a bit more time to work with

[6254]

MTR said they spend around 2 hours every night to do maintenance work system wide and so it is not necessary to close any part of the line during business hours.

The MTR corporation is profitable and earning per share ratio is about 15.25, shareholders get dividend every year

http://www.mtr.com.hk/en/corporate/investor/shareservices.html

[Cityflyer]

Wright 3G first appearance.

Also a first for HK double decker is the ability to see outside from the stairway which is pretty cool.

http://www.orientalmodelbuses.co.uk/Xtra/HK-KMB-Streetdeck.htm

[septa105R5/seClip9]

Forgot to share this video that uploaded few months ago. Here's the video of Hong Kong Transportation (MTR, Tram, NWFB, City Bus, and KMB) from my recent trip back in late February and early March. A lot has changes with new buses dominated the streets, as well as new MTR Trains! 

 

 

[Orion V]

Just heard from friends in HK that the oldest 3 MTR (ex-KCR lines excluded) lines have signal problems resulted in major delays of up to 40min.

Looks like age is catching up to one of the world most reliably heavy rail system! lol

The affected lines are red, green and blue which corresponds to the 3 oldest (original) MTR lines which probably shares similar technology and different than the other newer lines.

[Cityflyer]

I found this interesting detailed explanation of the MTR with many detail articles.

https://www.checkerboardhill.com/2010/12/overview-of-the-mtr-network/

[Cityflyer]

KMB's New Wright Gemini 3s.

http://www.orientalmodelbuses.co.uk/Xtra/HK-KMB-B8L-1.htm

[Orion V]

Besides the B8L Gemini 3s, KMB got 2 more new models for their DD fleet.

B8L MCV and B9TL Gemilang.

Didn't know they still ordered B9TLs now that its replacement, the B8Ls are in full production.

http://www.orientalmodelbuses.co.uk/Xtra/HK-KMB-B8L-3.htm

http://www.orientalmodelbuses.co.uk/Xtra/HK-KMB-Volvo-Gemilang.htm

[NA1127]

Right now Hong Kong has a peak hour route that needs to take almost 2 hours for the entire trip and is unreasonably meandering.
The route is called E43 (Fanling (Wah Ming) - Tung Chung Development Pier)

I tried each direction once - and it's an awful experience.

In addition to its meandering routing (the fastest way should be going through Tai Lam Tunnel but instead, this route goes through Tolo Highway and Tsing Sha Highway), as well as frequent traffic congestion enroute during peak hours, that time I took 2hrs and 4 minutes for me to get from Fanling to Tung Chung. Even from the last stop in Northern District to Lantau Link Bus Interchange itself took over 90mins.

For the return trip, sometimes it can take nearly 150mins for the entire trip as it has to observe Tsing Yi Island where some stops are located there.

Such thing has already been posted on local news media and are now being complained by residents of Northern District.

Just gonna search "LWB E43" on Youtube - you'll gonna find some video footages of this route lasting for more than 2 or even 2.5hrs for the entire trip. (Link: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=LWB+E43 )

If you really wanna try this when you go to HK, remember to go to a toilet before boarding, and minimize the frequency of water-drinking onboard.

Total kind of poor route planning by the Transport Department (especially there're only about 10 passengers on each departure).

Attached is the route map of E43 for your reference.

[Express691]

BIG news coming out of HK - NWFB will be merged into Citibus; proposal was approved hours ago

http://www.aastocks.com/en/stocks/news/aafn-con/now.1196799/latest-news

[NA1127]

sad to see an old friend go

I always ride them when I was still there

[Joshuamumble]

The first of MTR's newest trains, the CRRC Q-Train entered service on the Kwun Tong Line today- these will replace the DC Metro Cammell sets which were built between 1979 and the early 2000s

In addition, this was not reported but the AC Metro-Cammell sets and the 12-car IKK SP1900s that also ran on the East Rail Line have been fully replaced by newer 9-car Hyundai Rotem EMUs as of May 6; the latter are now becoming 8-car sets for the Tuen Ma Line (the combination of the West Rail and Ma On Shan line which opened in 2021) while the former are likely to be recycled since they will not fit in the updated stations and East Rail Line cross-harbour extension- parts from retired trains have become used for exercise machines in seniors' homes, while the seats have become benches in schools and other places

Moreover, the first class cars from the SP1900 series were converted to standard commuter cars by IKK over the summer for use on the Tuen Ma Line

[Joshuamumble]

MTR has also been retiring its 1990s Phase 2 Kawasaki LRVs inherited from the KCRC since September 2022 with the rollout of the Phase 5 CRRC LRVs, while most have been scrapped, the front of car 1088 was preserved as a static exhibit in a school alongside the cab end of MLR 351 (linked from a local Chinese forum); the refit included changing the LED displays on both units: https://www.hkitalk.net/HKiTalk2/thread-2163104-1-1.html

In addition, Citybus was the shuttle provider for the 2023 Hong Kong Marathon, using a mix of franchised and non-franchised ADL Enviro500s: https://www.hkitalk.net/HKiTalk2/thread-2163184-1-1.html

[D40LF]

KMB question for anyone in the know.

I was wondering if anyone knew a source that listed the meaning of the KMB classes for the air-con buses, ie ATENU. I think I have figured most of it out but not 100% sure.

[Joshuamumble]

These Fandom page may be of interest and are otherwise up to date:
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet_numbering
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet

On 2/14/2023 at 9:00 AM, D40LF said:

I was wondering if anyone knew a source that listed the meaning of the KMB classes for the air-con buses, ie ATENU. I think I have figured most of it out but not 100% sure.

ATENU class units are 2012-2018 ADL Enviro500/Enviro500 MMCs that are 12 m long, any Enviro500 MMCs built from 2019 or newer will have the E6 prefix

[Cathay 888]

1 hour ago, Joshuamumble said:

These Fandom page may be of interest and are otherwise up to date:
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet_numbering
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet

ATENU class units are 2012-2018 ADL Enviro500/Enviro500 MMCs that are 12 m long, any Enviro500 MMCs built from 2019 or newer will have the E6 prefix

In KMB internal, they're using registration instead of the fleet number~~

[D40LF]

15 hours ago, Joshuamumble said:

These Fandom page may be of interest and are otherwise up to date:
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet_numbering
https://hongkongbuses.fandom.com/wiki/Kowloon_Motor_Bus_fleet

ATENU class units are 2012-2018 ADL Enviro500/Enviro500 MMCs that are 12 m long, any Enviro500 MMCs built from 2019 or newer will have the E6 prefix

Thank you. I already saw those which started my search for more information. I think the problem is that there was more than one system in use and therefore a letter could be used more than once, which led to the confusion. For example S can be for Scania and for a short body length.

13 hours ago, Cathay 888 said:

In KMB internal, they're using registration instead of the fleet number~~

Yes, I have heard that too. I was reading Mike Davis' CMB book last night and how it explained the introduction of fleet numbers in 1973 as the HK Gov would no longer reserve blocks of license plates for buses. Therefore the companies, including KMB, introduced fleet numbers as there was a risk of two buses having the same numbers, although the prefix letters would be different, and therefore might cause confusion. I guess they have figured out a way to overcome this, or just don't care anymore.

[aznichiro115]

It has evolved through the years. KMB does not have a consistent method, it follows more or less the same pattern, but they do not follow their own rules. Some have different prefixes for different bodies, like B9TL: AVD, AVBE, AVBW, but some like the Trident, have the same prefix for different bodies: both ALX and DM bodies were ATR/ATS. Super Volvo Olympian: ALX and Volgren bodies are both 3ASV, but the Wright body was AVW. The Darts were all AA despite different bodies and lengths. 

But for ATENU: Air-Conditioned Trident Enviro New eUro

Would be my best guess. 

It used to be if the first letter was A it meant that it was air-conditioned. 

If the first digit was 3, it meant it was the longer version of that model. i.e.: 3N, 3BL, 3M, 3ASV, 3ATENU, 3AVBWU if there was a shorter version. 

If it began with S3 it was 11m or the slightly shorter version. i.e: S3N, S3BL, S3M, S3V

The model or brand is incorporated into the fleet prefix, depending on what was available. Some expand on previous prefixes. 

ATR: Air-Conditioned TRident, they couldn't use AT, as that was assigned to the Coaster previously. 

AD: Air-Conditioned Dragon. the Darts were given AA as AD was already taken, and a was the next letter in the model.

AN: Air-Conditioned LaNce. AL was taken by the Air conditioned Leyland Olympian, and AA was taken by the Dart. 

If it is used for the short model version, it typically has come first or last. ADS, ATS, W6S, ATES, S3N, S3BL. if it was for the brand Scania, it comes immediately after Air-Conditioned. 

 

 

[D40LF]

It seems KMB had an accident today.

Unverified video circulating on social media shows a double decker bus in Hong Kong crashing into a barrier on March 20, 2023. Seventy-six people were trapped for up to an hour, after a KMB vehicle travelling along Ching Cheung Road in Cheung Sha Wan tilted on its side near Lai Chi Kok Park at 9.43am. Most of those hurt suffered minor injuries. Police are investigating the cause of the accident.