PASSENGERS FLOCKING TO HONG KONG'S MODERNIZED FIVE STAR SUBURBAN RAILWAY

Hong Kong's 21.1-mile Kowloon-Canton Railway Corp. (KCRC) has been completely rebuilt, double tracked and electrified for handling the increased flow of commuters from major new towns which the Government is building to relieve population pressures on Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. A Transmark study, subsequently implemented, resulted in replacing virtually every structure to produce a completely new suburban railway. A new electric multiple-unit car fleet was acquired. Automatic fare collection has been introduced and steps taken to coordinate KCRC operation with Hong Kong's Mass Transit Railway, the recently opened rapid transit line. There are no subsidies for transit operators in Hong Kong yet KCRC is expected to be profitable by the late 1980s. KCRC is now studying a light rail transit line to extend its service into another series of suburban areas.