Get Free Rides on Election Day

Trams, buses and the MTR will be free December 19

In order to boost the voter turnout at the polls next Sunday, the government has made all trams, trains, and buses free that day.

The scheme will cost an estimated HK$35 million (US$4.5 million), and the government did not say whether it will reimburse the companies involved.

Passengers on the MTR will not need to tap in to use the train, as well as KMB, New World First Bus, Citybus and Hong Kong Tramways.

Some operators say they are forced to waive fares

However, the free rides won't be available on airport and border routes, overnight services, KMB's luxury buses, or most routes covering south Lantau. Minibuses, or Kaito ferry services.

"MTR will closely monitor train service on that day and implement appropriate operational measures to meet passenger demand. There will also be additional staff assisting passengers at stations," the company said.

A spokesman for one transport concern group warned that "many people will just make use of the free rides for touring around the city."

Some transport operators agree, saying they were effectively being forced to bear the cost of forgone revenue.

Minibuses, ferries are not involved in the scheme

"It is very frustrating because the operators are forced to waive the fares," said one operator. "And riders could take advantage of the free rides for leisure and entertainment purposes."

It is strange for the government to make this offer in order to entice people to vote, since their polling station is walking distance from their homes...

Artistic Passion for Trams

The specially-designed tram that celebrates its 115th anniversary this year

I spotted this special tram over the weekend and love the story behind it.

Up close the tram is covered in hundreds of pictures (about 350) -- of other trams in and around Hong Kong to celebrate 115 years in the city.

They are the work of Japanese artist Koichi Matsuda, who has taken as many as 10,000 photographs of trams in the past five years.

Koichi Matsuda has taken 10,000 pictures of trams in 5 years

He found not only this type of transport but also the advertising on them very eye-catching.

"Hong Kong trams are special. In Japan, there are no double-decker [trams]," Matsuda, 65, said.

"The constant change of tram advertisements is the most suitable subject to showcase the vigorous economic growth of Hong Kong."

In the past five years, Matsuda has visited Hong Kong 20 times and used the same camera and lens to take pictures of the trams, usually at the Shau Kei Wan terminus. He took so many pictures that from 2016 to last year, he held six exhibition in Japan and Taipei.

After seeing his pictures, some Japanese were inspired to visit Hong Kong. "Many of my friends became more interested in Hong Kong and trams after seeing my work," he said.

But Matsuda hoped to use his photos to decorate a tram and the opportunity came after Hong Kong Tramways "liked" one of his photos on social media, and he contacted the company about his idea.

He is thrilled his proposal became a reality. This tram will be running along Hong Kong Island for two or three months. It's one of 164 trams running along the 30km system that carries 200,000 passengers daily.

Ding ding!

Picture of the Day: Smiling Trams

Caught the tram with its smile in Central this evening

Hongkong Tramways has come up with a way to rejuvenate itself in the hopes of luring more people to ride trams -- by giving them a smile.

Almost a month ago the company unveiled the new look -- in the picture you can see the lights of the tram has a pair of eyes and nose, and a smile on its bumper.

The company hopes this new look and slogan, "Catch a Ride, Catch a Smile" not only encourages people to smile, but also reminisce about riding "ding dings" as they are affectionately called.

Even the sign posts at tram stops have this new logo of the green tram, and of course the subtle smile.

Some 200,000 passengers ride trams everyday, but the company may have to mull raising fares to keep up with rising transportation costs.

So here's a shout out to people in Hong Kong to try to ride the tram as much as possible -- it's an iconic part of the city we can't give up using.

Keeping Traditional Transport Alive

An iconic picture of the Star Ferry with Hong Kong Island in the distance

The tram and Star Ferry are iconic public transport in Hong Kong, and while tourists love to ride them and take photographs, and locals like the inexpensive fares, there are fewer and fewer young people willing to work in these two areas.

In the case of the Star Ferry, chief coxwain Chan Tsu-wing is 61 years old and has returned from retirement twice to help out the company.

Because he is the longest-serving employee, he has to manage subordinates, but he'd much rather be out in the water steering the ferry back and forth between Hong Kong Island and Kowloon.

Chief coxwain Chan Tsu-wing at the helm of the Star Ferry

"If we want to protect this cultural symbol of Hong Kong, we have to have successors," he says. "Fewer young people want to work in this field and we have no one to take our place. The most difficult thing for us is the lack of fresh talent. Nowadays, we would need to urge people to take license examinations. People today are not as hardworking as in the past."

While driving trams isn't as monotonous, as drivers need to keep a constant look out for pedestrians darting out into the street, while having to deal with all kinds of vehicles on the roads, not many young people are interested in this job either, preferring to work in an air conditioned office and make more money.

These jobs may seem monotonous, but imagine if Hong Kong didn't have the Star Ferry or trams anymore? That's why they need to be supported.

And this is where the Hong Kong government needs to step in. It should be subsidizing these two means of transport because they are a crucial part of the city's landscape.

Most people think it's easy to drive a tram -- think again

That way fares don't necessarily have to increase all the time, and people might have more incentive to appreciate them more. If people have decent salaries doing these jobs, then maybe they won't mind doing them so much?

Currently it's hard to find people willing to sit by the docks all day in all weather conditions to help dock and undock ferries, while tram drivers also have to deal with all kinds of weather conditions and mostly have to bundle up for winter, or sweat it out in the summer as most trams don't have air conditioning.

Ridership for both have dropped off considerably -- the Star Ferry when its Central location was moved several hundred metres away, and trams were hurt when three more stops on the MTR were added westward towards Kennedy Town.

Hong Kong and its people don't have enough appreciation for these old school means of transport. Will the government just let the companies kill off the trams and Star Ferries because one day they won't be feasible anymore?

"It is a pity that Hong Kong is not the sort of place that credits people for their knowledge and passion if it can't make money, says tram enthusiast Joseph Tse Yiu-hon, 36.

"Passengers are often happy with the low fare if HK$2.30 a ride and appreciate the fact that the century-old transport is still running on the streets, but it is easy to forget the faces of those who are actually continuing the legacy," he says.

The government should really look at subsidies to ensure the existence of these two means of public transport keep going well into the future.

Picture of the Day: Pokemon Craze

There was a long queue of people waiting patiently to get on the tram!

This past week has been crazy on the streets of Hong Kong, watching people become particularly zombie-like, glued to their phones without a regard to their surroundings.

Thousands of people here have become addicted to Pokemon GO and I've heard of people bumping into lamp posts and trying to play the game surreptitiously under their desks at work.

The police, hospitals and even the People's Liberation Army have all warned players to stay away from their premises, worried they will cause havoc. It would be good not to stray into PLA territory as you never know what might happen...

Not having downloaded the game myself, a few friends have showed me how the augmented reality game works. It's like being in a virtual world where you catch virtual monsters with a ball that you can collect at various points in the city.

As you go by a certain landmark, there's a large disc that players have to spin to get more balls. And it also has a picture of the restaurant or shop that you are approaching.

Then you use these balls as ammunition to hit these pokemon or monsters. The more you shoot down, and the more rare they are, the more points you score. And then you can go to Pokemon Gyms to beef up your strength, which are highly prized places.

That's how the game gets people out to play, which is a good way to encourage them to explore neighbourhoods and meet up with friends.

One of the best ways to play Pokemon GO is on the tram, because you can pass by a lot of places on Hong Kong island for only HK$2.30.

So perhaps I should not have been surprised when I saw a massive line-up for the tram at the Kennedy Town terminus this afternoon after I came back from the gym. There must have been over 30 people waiting in line, when usually there is only a handful.

Hong Kong Tramways that runs the trams must be happy about this unexpected windfall -- its revenues have been dropping because of the MTR expansion to Western and also because it's summer not many are willing to sit in a tram without air conditioning.

But who knows how long this Pokemon Go crazy will last? Two friends remarked that they downloaded the game and within 20 minutes of playing it lost interest. On the other hand there are many others who are completely addicted and are posting updates of what they find on Facebook.

While I'm not too crazy about Pokemon hunters wandering around without noticing who or what they are bumping into, at least they are giving the trams a lot of business!

A Cool(er) Ride

Look out for tram number 88 that has air conditioning!

Just in time to help beat the heat, there will be one tram going around Hong Kong Island that will be air conditioned. Yes -- one trial tram is being further modernized to see if it can lure more people to get back on the ding ding.

From Monday, the tram car with the lucky number 88 will be riding the rails for three months, and fares will be the same as non air-conditioned ones. Temperatures will be set at 23, 25 and 27 degrees Celsius and passengers will be surveyed on which setting should be adopted.

Senior engineering manager Steven Chan Si-yiu explained it cost HK$250,000 (US$32,170) to retrofit air conditioning in the car, and did not rule out fare hikes if there were more air-conditioned cars in the future.

He did not reveal how much electricity the car uses for air conditioning; however, if there are more air-conditioned cars on the track, they have to be separated from each other, otherwise they may draw too much electricity at one spot and could bring down the grid.

The MTR extension has affected ridership on trams

Chan said that if the current fleet of 163 cars were fitted with air-conditioning, then Hong Kong Tramways would have to install power substations along the track to boost power voltage.

The company hopes having air conditioning will bring riders back to the tram. Since the MTR extended its Island line to Kennedy Town in December 2014, the number of daily riders has dropped to 180,000 from 200,000.

It'll be interesting to see how people react to having air-con in the tram -- probably a positive thing. But people are also price-sensitive these days, so it'll have to depend on how much the price hike is...