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MTR Corporation
Hong KongHong Kong Economy

Embattled Hong Kong rail operator hit with fresh safety scare over Yuen Long station pillars that have been sinking since 2012

MTR Corp reveals subsidence forced developer Sun Hung Kai Properties to suspend building work on third phase of luxury Grand Yoho development, but says public was never in danger

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Pillars supporting a section of track at Yuen Long station have been sinking. Photos: Dickson Lee
Cannix Yau

Already reeling from a series of scandals the embattled MTR Corporation was hit by another safety scare on Friday when it emerged that pillars holding up a section of track at Yuen Long station are sinking.

The news came less than 24 hours after the rail operator’s board had demanded a review of how managers were running the city’s costliest rail project, the HK$97.1 billion (US$12.4 billion) Sha Tin to Central link.

This time, however, one of MTR Corp’s harshest critics, lawmaker and former rail boss Michael Tien Puk-sun, agreed with the corporation’s assessment there had been no wrongdoing and no risk to public safety.

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Weeks of revelations by the media concerning shoddy work and cover-ups during ongoing construction at three stations along the Sha Tin to Central link have rattled the company.

An artists impression of the Grand Yoho development in Yuen Long. Sun Hung Kai Properties was forced to suspend work on the third phase when subsidence was discovered. Photo: Handout
An artists impression of the Grand Yoho development in Yuen Long. Sun Hung Kai Properties was forced to suspend work on the third phase when subsidence was discovered. Photo: Handout
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On Friday, the rail operator said it had discovered in 2012 that a viaduct at the Yuen Long station, near the construction site of the third phase of the luxury Grand Yoho development, had started to show signs of subsidence.

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