Unauthorised wall work on Hong Kong’s HK$97.1 billion Sha Tin-Central link saw reinforcement bars removed, MTR admits
Contractor accused of ignoring design drawings in two more instances, but railway operator insists irregularities posed no safety risk
Hong Kong’s troubled railway operator on Tuesday disclosed two more cases of problematic construction along the multibillion-dollar Sha Tin-Central link, just days after a frontline worker leaked details of similar “unauthorised deviations” from design drawings for a station platform wall.
The company revealed in a report submitted to the government that a joint venture between contractors Hsin Chong Group Holdings and Samsung C&T had divulged two more cases of unauthorised modifications to a wall being built at To Kwa Wan station. The MTR Corp insisted the irregularities, spanning an area of 60 square metres (645 sq ft), posed no safety risk.
A similar problem on a different section of the wall was originally exposed by a lawmaker who said a frontline construction worker told her remedial work to shave off concrete to correct bulging had been carried out in April, and the removal of reinforcing bars was unauthorised.
The allegations led to the Highways Department ordering the railway giant to formally explain the errors, which are among a number to have plagued construction of the HK$97.1 billion (US$12.4 billion) line – the most expensive railway project in the city’s history.