Hong Kong rail fares set to rise again
Controversial fare adjustment mechanism means increase of 2.7 per cent set for later this year
Hong Kong commuters will be digging deeper into their pockets from this summer, as government data paves the way for another rail fare increase of 2.7 per cent based on a controversial fare adjustment system.
The hike comes after the government announced an annual wage rise for transport workers of 4.1 per cent last December.
It will be the seventh straight year that the MTR Corporation has upped fares since the adjustment mechanism came into effect in 2009, despite profits of nearly HK$13 billion last year.
The rise, expected to take effect mid-year, comes after the government last week requested MTR Corp complete its review of the mechanism by next year – a year earlier than scheduled – amid growing calls to rein in fare hikes.
Announcing the upcoming fare increase yesterday, the MTR Corp said it would work out and announce the actual details of new fares and the concession package at a later time.
The increase is calculated from the average of the annual inflation rate for December, which was 2.5 per cent, and the yearly increase in wages for the transport sector, which was 4.1 per cent. A productivity factor – 0.6 of a percentage point – is deducted.
The mechanism was last changed in 2013, when the reduction for productivity was raised from 0.1 to 0.6 of a percentage point. Fare rises are also capped at the rate of increase in median monthly household income, which was 3.3 per cent last year.