Just Saying | Hong Kong’s MTR system remains the best in the world, so why lose faith in it?

Yonden Lhatoo reminds us that despite all the negative publicity surrounding the city’s most popular form of public transport, it is still doing a remarkable job and remains the envy of the world

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Hong Kong’s MTR is a world-class operation that is easily one of the best – if not the best – on the planet. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 4:30pm, 2 Jun 2018Updated: 11:20pm, 2 Jun 2018

One look at all the news about Hong Kong’s metro system these days and you’d think we’re talking about a train wreck of a service.

Anyone overseas who has never been to this city could be forgiven for assuming we have a third world-standard mass transit railway, given the constant negative media coverage about service disruptions, fare increases and construction flaws.

In the latest “scandal”, MTR bosses have admitted a contractor was found to have cut corners on five occasions while building a key section of the city’s most expensive railway project, but they did not consider it a criminal offence to be reported to police.

The MTR Corporation is now being accused of a cover-up as it turns out the shoddy work relating to the construction of platforms at the Hung Hom station of the HK$97.1 billion Sha Tin-Central link was discovered earlier than it originally claimed.

A row has erupted after contractor was found to have cut corners on the construction of platforms at Hung Hom station, which the MTR was then accused of covering up. Photo: Sam Tsang

Lawmakers across the spectrum have set aside their usually rancorous political and ideological differences to indulge in some good old, bipartisan MTR bashing. Some are even saying they have lost faith in the railway operator and the people of Hong Kong can no longer trust it.

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