Central Station (MTR)

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Central
中環
MTR rapid transit station
HKMTRCentralStation 2007.jpg
Platforms 1 and 2 on the Tsuen Wan Line
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese 中環
Simplified Chinese 中环
General information
Location Des Voeux Road Central/Chater Road, Central
Central and Western District, Hong Kong
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Owned by MTR Corporation
Operated by MTR Corporation
Line(s) <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
Platforms 4 (island platform (Tsuen Wan Line), 2 split level side platforms (Island Line))
Connections           Hong Kong Station, bus, public light bus, tram, ferry, Peak Tram
Construction
Structure type Underground
Platform levels 3
Disabled access Yes
Other information
Station code CEN
History
Opened <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
  • 12 February 1980 (1980-02-12) (Tsuen Wan Line, as part of Kwun Tong Line)
  • 23 May 1986 (1986-05-23) (Island Line)
Previous names Chater
Services
Preceding station   MTR   Following station
Terminus Tsuen Wan Line
towards Tsuen Wan
towards Kennedy Town
 Island Line
towards Chai Wan
Terminus Airport Express
Transfer at: Hong Kong
Tung Chung Line
Transfer at: Hong Kong
towards Tung Chung
Location
Hong Kong MTR system map
Hong Kong MTR system map
Central
Location within the MTR system
The platforms of the Tsuen Wan Line are located under Chater Road, next to the Legislative Council Building
Platform 3 on the Island Line

Central station is an MTR station located in the Central area of Hong Kong Island. The station's livery is firebrick red, except for the Tsuen Wan Line platforms, where the livery is dark brown. The station is the southern terminus for the Tsuen Wan Line and also connects with the Island Line, and also the Tung Chung Line and the Airport Express via Hong Kong Station.

The station was once known as Chater Station. Chater Station was initially conceived to cater for average daily traffic of 330,000 passengers, and was to have been 380 metres (1,250 ft) long – one of the longest stations in the world.[1] More than 200,000 passengers use this station daily. The longest distance between two subway exits is approximately 700 m.

History

Early plans

Central Station was in the Hong Kong Mass Transport Study, a system proposed in Sept 1967.[2] Together with Western Market Station, it was to serve as the interchange station of the Kwun Tong Line and Island Line. In the recommended system, Tsuen Wan Line would end at Admiralty rather than Central. Its designated position was originally under Des Voeux Road Central between Jubilee Street and Pedder Street (between Queen Victoria Street and Theatre Lane).

Subsequently, it was also included in the Hong Kong Mass Transit Further Studies, in 1970. However, the 1967 Central Station was replaced with two separate but connected stations, namely Chater Station (遮打站, under Chater Road) and Pedder Station (必打站, under Pedder Street), which would serve the Kong Kow Line (now Tsuen Wan Line) and Island Line respectively.

Modified Initial System and opening

The station first opened as Chater Station on 10 February 1980 as the terminus of the Modified Initial System (MIS, now Kwun Tong Line). Afterwards, people could travel on a direct train between Central and Kwun Tong. Only part of the station came into operation as the Island Line had not been opened yet.

The Island Line was built in two phases, with Central being opened at a later date than most of the other stations. Construction was carried out in early 1983, connecting the new Island Line platforms with the original structure. The line was extended to Sheung Wan on 23 May 1986, and the Island Line platforms came into service.

At first, although the station was named "Chater", the Chinese name was "中環" (Central). This would be misleading as many thought that the Chinese name would be "遮打" (Chinese translation of "Chater"). The English name was renamed "Central" (the English equivalent of "中環") along with several other stations on the Tsuen Wan Line, when the section of the Island Line between Admiralty and Chai Wan opened on 31 May 1985.

Passageway to Hong Kong Station

One of the components of the Airport Core Programme between 1991 and 1998 was a railway connecting the new Hong Kong International Airport to the city centre. To link Central with the nearby Hong Kong Station, southern terminus of the Tung Chung Line and the Airport Express, a passageway was built under Connaught Road to connect the two stations. The Pedder Street concourse, where the passageway starts, was refurbished with a design similar to that of Hong Kong Station.

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Panorama of Platform 3 on the Island Line towards Chai Wan

Timetable

Line Destination First train Last train
Tsuen Wan Line Tsuen Wan 06:06 00:54
Island Line Chai Wan 06:07 00:58
Kennedy Town 06:07 00:58
Source: MTR[3]

Station layout

Central Station has 4 platforms on three levels, excluding those of Hong Kong Station. Hong Kong Station and Central Station are linked by a pedestrian passage.

Platforms 1 and 2 are situated on a shared island platform on the middle level. They are served by the Tsuen Wan Line and were built directly under Chater Road, extending from Des Voeux Road Central to Club Street. These platforms make up the southern terminus of the Tsuen Wan Line.

Platforms 3 and 4 are built beneath Des Voeux Road Central at the intersection of Pedder Street, stretching from World-Wide House to Alexandra House. Platform 3 is situated on the upper level, whilst platform 4 is on the lowermost level, and they sandwich Platforms 1 and 2. They are side platforms built on the northern side of the road, with Platform 3 on top of Platform 4. Escalators are provided between the 3 levels, to facilitate passengers who interchange.[4]

Most of the platforms are straight. However, the east parts (near Admiralty Station) of platform are curved and the gap is large.

As part of the Airport Core Programme[5] during the 1990s, an underground passage was built between Central and Hong Kong stations to allow transfers from the Island Line and Tsuen Wan Line to the Airport Express and Tung Chung Line. The passage opened in 1998 with the opening of these two new lines of the MTR.

Ground - Exits
Penthouse Chater Road Concourse -
L1
Concourse		 Pedder Street Concourse Customer Service, MTRShops
Hang Seng Bank, vending machines
Octopus promotion machine
Chater Road Concourse Customer Service, MTRShops
|ATM
L2
Platforms		 Chater Road Concourse Customer Service, MTRShops
Hang Seng Bank, vending machines
Pedder Sreet Concourse Customer Service, MTRShops
Subway to Hong Kong Station for      Tung Chung Line &      Airport Express
Octopus promotion machine, i-centre internet service
Side platform, doors will open on the left
Platform 3       Island Line towards Chai Wan (Admiralty) →
L3
Platforms		 Platform 1       Tsuen Wan Line towards Tsuen Wan (Admiralty) →
Island platform, doors will open on the left or right
Platform 2       Tsuen Wan Line towards Tsuen Wan (Admiralty) →
L4
Platform
Side platform, doors will open on the right
Platform 4 ←      Island Line towards Kennedy Town (Sheung Wan)

[4]

Track layout
Admiralty
L3
L2／L4
Sheung Wan

Exits

Signage showing exit list
Central Station Exit B
Central Station Exit K

Central Station stretches across the entire length of Chater Road to Statue Square in the east, and along Des Voeux Road to Li Yuen Street East in the west. The distance between the easternmost and westernmost exits is approximately 700 m. 13 entrances were built, connecting buildings and shopping malls, as well as the main road and ground transport facilities nearby.[6]

Transport connections

Central Station is one of the transport hubs of Hong Kong. The area around Central Station (and Hong Kong Station) has a wide range of transport options that includes tramways, buses, ferries, minibuses and more. These are all the connections the commuter can refer to when travelling to areas not served by the MTR network from Central.

The area is a major transport hub for Hong Kong (see also Transport in Hong Kong).

References

  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Freeman, Fox, Wilbur Smith & Associates (1967), Hong Kong Mass Transport Study.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ www.info.gov.hk/napco/index-e.html Archived 5 April 2005 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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