University Station (MTR)

This article is about the station serving Chinese University of Hong Kong. For the station serving the University of Hong Kong, see HKU Station.
University
大學
MTR rapid transit station

Station exterior
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 大學
Simplified Chinese 大学
General information
Location Chak Cheung Street, Ma Liu Shui
Sha Tin District, Hong Kong
Coordinates 22°24′48″N 114°12′37″E / 22.4134°N 114.2102°E / 22.4134; 114.2102Coordinates: 22°24′48″N 114°12′37″E / 22.4134°N 114.2102°E / 22.4134; 114.2102
Owned by Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation
Operated by MTR Corporation
Line(s)
Platforms 2 (side platforms)
Connections Bus, public light bus, kai-to
Construction
Structure type At-grade
Platform levels 1
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Station code UNI
History
Opened
  • 24 September 1956 (1956-09-24)
Electrified 1983
Previous names Ma Liu Shui
Services
Preceding station   MTR   Following station
towards Hung Hom
East Rail Line
towards Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau
towards Hung Hom
  Former services  
Preceding station   KCR   Following station
towards Kowloon
Kowloon–Canton Railway (British Section)
towards Lo Wu
Location
Hong Kong MTR system map
University
Location within the MTR system
University Station platform

University Station is an MTR station located near the Chinese University of Hong Kong in Ma Liu Shui. It is between Tai Po Market and Fo Tan/Racecourse stations on the East Rail Line. This station was the first post-war station to open on the line, and has the most curved track of any MTR station.

History

Built and opened in 1955, University Station was originally named Ma Liu Shui (馬料水) after the predominant name of the area before the Chinese University of Hong Kong was built. However, even at this point the station was serving Chung Chi College (崇基學院), which would become part of the new university in 1963. The station was given its present name in 1966, and in 1983 its tracks were electrified along with the rest of the KCR British Section.

A Chinese goods wagon derailed north of the station at around 2:00 p.m. on 4 June 1988. Nobody was injured, but the derailment led to thousands being stranded at University, Tai Po Market, and Fo Tan stations, leading to an "almost hysterical scramble for road transport".[1] At 5:00 p.m. a lorry overturned in the northbound carriageway of the Lion Rock Tunnel. Together, the accidents caused a "great stoppage" in Kowloon and the eastern New Territories, leading to anger and fights at massive queues for taxi ranks and bus stations.[1] The Police Tactical Unit was dispatched to University Station.[2]

Originally, the station was the smallest in the system. In the early 1990s, the new town of Ma On Shan was developed on the other side of Tolo Harbour, and it seemed inefficient to make residents there go all the way to Sha Tin to catch a train. Therefore, University Station was expanded at a cost of $72.4 million, becoming an important interchange between buses and minibuses from Ma On Shan and the East Rail Line.[3] Construction began in late 1998 and the expanded station, designed by Leigh & Orange, was officially opened in October 2000. The total floor area of the station concourses increased from 800 square metres to 2,000 square metres.[3] Four years later, in December 2004, the Ma On Shan Line opened to provide Ma On Shan with direct railway service. Thus, University Station's importance to residents of Ma On Shan has since greatly diminished.

A new exit D opened at the north end of the station in 2012 to serve several newly opened teaching buildings nearby. The structure was awarded LEED silver precertification for features such as natural daytime lighting, rainwater storage for irrigation, natural ventilation, and furniture made from recycled railway sleepers.[4] The entrance is unusual on the MTR system in that it opens directly onto a platform rather than a concourse level, meaning that it is convenient only for those using northbound trains because there is no way to cross the tracks at that area. To access Hung Hom-bound trains from exit D, passengers must walk the length of the platform to cross the tracks using the exit A/B concourse.

Safety

The platform is built along a curve, causing gaps of a range of different sizes to exist while the trains are lined up to the platform. The KCRC responded to these complaints (in Funride@KCR) by assuring passengers that they will install plates on the side of platforms to reduce the gap, though this has not been done.

After two incidents of children falling onto the tracks at University Station in 1985, the issue was discussed in the Legislative Council. The Secretary for Transport asserted that the gaps were within "international safety limits", and that the gap could not be narrowed due to the curvature of the station as well as the "rather wider bodies" of the Chinese through trains which run through the station daily.[5] A man who fractured his leg boarding a train at the station in 2008 asserted that he fell into a gap of about 35 cm, while the MTR claimed it was only 22 cm at the relevant section of platform.[6]

Today, the station is one of three on the network marked with special signage noting the "gap black spots". The platform edge is outfitted with flashing neon lighting and "小心空隙" (mind the gap) decals,[6] and typically there are several staff on duty on the platform.

Timetable

Line Destination First train Last train
East Rail LineLok Ma Chau05:4421:55
Lo Wu05:4123:27
Sheung Shui00:45
Hung Hom05:5600:51
Source: MTR[7]

Station layout

P
Platforms
West Concourse Exit A, C, D, Customer Service, CUHK shuttle bus terminus
Side platform, doors will open on the left
Platform 1      East Rail Line towards Lo Wu or Lok Ma Chau (Tai Po Market)
Platform 2      East Rail Line towards Hung Hom (Racecourse race days, Fo Tan all times)
Side platform, doors will open on the left
C
Concourse
(Ground)
East Concourse Exit B, Customer Service, transport interchange, washrooms
Shops, vending machines, automatic teller machines
Passageway Passageway to both platforms

[8]

Entrances/exits

Transport interchange

Number Termini
KMB
87K University Station ↺ Kam Ying Court
87S Kam Ying Court ↺ University Station
99R University Station ↔ Sai Kung (North)
272A University Station ↺ Pak Shek Kok
272K University Station ↺ Hong Kong Science Park
289K University Station ↺ Chevalier Garden

References

  1. 1 2 Fu, Winnie (6 June 1988). "No short-term cure for massive jams" (PDF). South China Morning Post. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  2. "Rush hour accidents clog up Kowloon" (PDF). South China Morning Post. 5 June 1988. Retrieved 25 September 2014.
  3. 1 2 "KCR University Station extended to provide passengers with a more spacious and comfortable travelling environment". Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation. 5 October 2000. Retrieved 1 May 2014.
  4. "Award-winning "green" entrance set to open at MTR University Station" (PDF). Mass Transit Railway. 20 September 2012. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  5. "Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Council of Hong Kong. 6 November 1985. p. 40. Retrieved 1 March 2014.
  6. 1 2 "CHAN CHUNG KUEN v MTR CORPORATION LIMITED DCPI 764/2009". District Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
  7. "University Station timetable" (PDF). MTR Corporation. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  8. "University Station layout" (PDF). MTR Corporation. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  9. "University Station street map" (PDF). MTR Corporation. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
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