Explainer: how Hong Kong’s low-cost Star Ferry will keep itself current for the future
City’s iconic form of public transport has secured another 15 years of operation
On Tuesday, Hong Kong’s iconic Star Ferry was guaranteed to be able to continue providing trips for tourists and residents for the next 15 years, as its operator was granted a new set of franchise rights. Star Ferry Company will continue running eight ferries between Central and Tsim Sha Tsui, as well as Wan Chai and Tsim Sha Tsui, until March 31, 2033. But the 120-year-old operator had to promise a series of measures to upgrade its service.
Q: What’s the Star Ferry?
The Star Ferry is Hong Kong’s oldest form of public transport, taking passengers across Victoria Harbour between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. It costs HK$2.70 to HK$3.70 for a cross-harbour trip, which is 56 per cent to 72 per cent cheaper than rail or bus fares.
Star Ferry traces its origins to 1880 when Dorabjee Naorojee Mithaiwala, a Parsee cook, began a ferry service across the harbour with his steamboat, the Morning Star. The fledgling service was known as the Kowloon Ferry Company
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During the next 10 years, businessman Sir Catchick Paul Chater bought all the company’s boats and in May 1898 the Star Ferry Company, as it is known today, became a public company.