In this issue

Annual review for 2024
Kai Tak Sports Park bus routes

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A Groundbreaking Year: Review for 2024

Since the creation of the Hong Kong Transport Journal, a number of milestones and breakthroughs in public transport in Hong Kong have been recorded in the Journal over the past ten issues. From the introduction of the first hydrogen bus to the debut of the 45th Anniversary Themed Train of MTR, along with the introduction of new bus routes and services to make journeys easier, this Journal documents the perspective of transport enthusiasts who were amazed.

The following are some of the picks of 2024 in transport in Hong Kong.

New energy revolution

The year 2024 was seen as a revolution in the scope of new energy transportation. In February 2024, Citybus introduced Hong Kong's first hydrogen bus into passenger service, thus opening a new horizon in new energy transportation. Continuing the tradition of equipping BYD B12 electric buses, KMB became the launch operator of the Enviro500EV in May 2024, and MTR Bus followed suit in June. The latter even procured 35 extra buses to replace the older fleet of diesel buses. With no fossil fuels involved and with less noise, new energy transportation was heralded as the tool for carbon neutrality. The government of Hong Kong has set the date for carbon neutrality to be the year 2050, with Citybus targeted to fully equip their bus fleet with new energy buses in in 2045.

Alongside the fact that buses are going green, other transport artifacts are going green as well. With funding from the Government, MTR tested a hydrogen fuel-cell tram in late 2024, discovering the possibilities of hydrogen fuel-cell-powered transportation in the railway sector. The year 2024 also saw the opening of Hong Kong's first public hydrogen refill station in Yuen Long District. It is expected that, in the future, as more new energy transportation is introduced, a new image of Hong Kong's transportation will be introduced.

New image for sightseeing buses

In 2024, more tourists visited Hong Kong than before the pandemic, and sightseeing bus services were one of the must-rides for them. Dealing with the high demand, bus operators invested themselves in the tourism market for extra revenue while trying to attract tourists alike. KMB introduced a new tourist bus route, HK1, in September 2024, circling around tourism hotspots in Kowloon. This was the first time KMB operated a tourism bus route on its own in more than 20 years. The well-established open-top sightseeing bus operator Citybus, they refreshed their service as HK City Sightseeing (which replaced their older Rickshaw Sightseeing Bus branding) and introduced their new look for the entire experience.

However, after this transition, KMB still experienced low ridership with their use of ordinary double-decker buses and attractive service offers, while Citybus and Big Bus Hong Kong gained huge reputations and different passenger sources for years. For KMB, they planned to purchase 10 open-top electric double-decker buses to improve their situation which will be delivered in late 2025.

Retro return

2024 also marks the 45th anniversary of MTR and Citybus, and both offered events to attract engagement to the celebrations. MTR opened a new exhibition at Hung Hom Station, Station Rail Voyage, in August 2024. The exhibition shows old MTR artifacts and old trains which became a popular hit in the first four months of the exhibition. Originally planned to end in 2024, the exhibition still continues to this date with an additional piece being added to the exhibition: three vehicles from the Ktt set, which was added on 22 January 2025. MTR also decorated an M-Train as the 45th-Anniversary Themed Train with retro cab end in white color. The train resurfaced the memories of many Hong Kong people about how MTR largely connected to their daily lives, specifically the white cab-end and ball strap-hangers.

For Citybus, they refurbished numerous old buses which made history in the early years. One of these, a Leyland Olympian in a livery of the early 1990s, was returned to its appearance when it was first placed into service. The bus would later become the topic of many bus enthusiasts as it was refurbished with fine details. Citybus actively purchased back their old fleet from private owners in 2019, with six buses in their retro fleet in 2025. In addition, a Volvo B8L was also retro-liveried into the 1990s livery as part of the celebration of the 45th-anniversary of the bus operator.

New Bus Routes for Kai Tak: Special Services for Sports Park

On 18 January 2025, KMB and Citybus began operating a single-way, special bus service after the conclusion of major events at Kai Tak Sports Park. The service includes three bus routes: SP1, SP2, and SP10. The services were used to test the capability to efficiently and smoothly handle the demand for passengers heading home from the events. Meanwhile, MTR would strengthen services for the Tuen Ma Line and deploy additional staff for both Kai Tak and Sung Wong Toi Stations to cope with the crowd.

Route details

All three bus routes would pick up passengers at Sung Wong Toi Road Pick-up and Drop-off Area, south of the Sports Park, and each service departs when the bus is full or at a specified time. In the case of 18 January, a concert with 15,000 people was the subject of these bus routes.

SP1

This bus route, operated by KMB, served Kwun Tong, Sau Mau Ping, and Tseung Kwan O before terminating at Hang Hau (North) bus terminus (near Tseung Kwan O Hospital). The full adult fare is HK$15.4.

SP2

Operated by Citybus, the bus route serves Mong Kok with two bus stops at Prince Edward Station and Nelson Street, with no stops in between. The adult fare is HK$12.8, and the expected journey time is about 20 minutes.

SP10

The jointly-operated bus route of Citybus and KMB brings passengers directly to Wan Chai and Central via the Cross-Harbour Tunnel, with the routing in Hong Kong Island observing that of bus route 111. Among the three bus routes, this bus route is the most expensive, with the adult full fare of HK$25.8.

Other highlights for January 2025

China Eastern Airlines started operating regularly scheduled Shanghai-Hong Kong flights using a COMAC C919 aircraft (registration B-657T) on 1 January 2025. This was the first international scheduled passenger flight flown by the C919s.

On the same day, McDonald's® offered free rides for Star Ferry's Central-Star Ferry Pier ferry route, celebrating the 50th anniversary of their Hong Kong franchise. For this special occasion MV Morning Star was wrapped in a special livery with McDonald's® characters and its distinctive golden arches.
On 5 January 2025, KMB, Citybus, and NLB increased their bus fares between 3 to 10 percent. The reasons for the rise in fares were mainly increased fuel and maintenance prices and labor issues.
Long Win Bus started operating a peak-hour bus route serving Yuen Long, Tuen Mun, and the Airport service areas as bus route E36C on 20 January 2025.