RADICAL proposals are being considered by the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) to trade-in its 117 commuter trains for more modern carriages.
The idea, which is not covered by the KCRC's long-term investment plan, is the brainchild of Albert Choi, the corporation's senior rolling stock manager.
He believes it would be more cost-effective to sell the trains now while they are only half way through their 30-year operational life and buy another fleet that is more energy efficient and more properly meets passenger needs.
But the main stumbling block to the plan is finding a buyer for KCRC's existing three-car trains.
Transport sources said the KCRC could only afford to go ahead with the scheme if it was able to offset the cost of the new fleet by selling its existing trains. But with so many units this could prove extremely difficult.
''Buying so many new trains will cost billions, if not trillions, of dollars. And to make the plan viable the KCRC will have to raise about 50 per cent of this money from the sale of its present stock,'' said a transport industry source.
