Hong Kong MTR's West Island Line opens on time
A rare victory in a tough year for the railway, but Sai Ying Pun station still won't open until March as construction issues have pushed it back
After a bruising year beset with delayed projects, budget overruns, breakdowns and the premature departure of its chief executive, the MTR Corporation finally has something to celebrate with the opening - on time - of the West Island Line extension today.
At a ceremony launching the new service yesterday, the railway operator's operations director, Jacob Kam Chak-pui, warned there would be "some teething problems", as with "any new railway around the world". He gave the example of trains not stopping exactly where they should, meaning passengers might have to wait for a few seconds to get on or off of them.
Hours after returning from his duty visit to Beijing, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying officiated at the ceremony at Kennedy Town's new station. He told a crowd of more than 100 that it was he who had persuaded the previous administration to build the extension.
Leung, who was the Executive Council convenor between 1999 and 2011, said he and his predecessor, Chung Sze-yuen, had lobbied the government to commit to railway projects that would not be profitable in commercial terms but would benefit the community.
"We have been waiting for the opening of a new MTR line for the past six years," he said of the launch of the three-kilometre extension that will connect Sheung Wan with the University of Hong Kong and Kennedy Town.