Hong Kong Tramways ‘facing fierce competition’ as patronage remains below pre-pandemic levels
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong Tramways “is facing fierce competition” from other modes of public transport as the number of passengers remains below pre-pandemic levels, the city’s transport advisory body has said.
The Transport Advisory Committee made the remarks on Wednesday after it had a meeting to discuss the tram company’s fare adjustment proposal, which was submitted in February.
Hong Kong Tramways seeks to increase adult fares by 10 per cent, from HK$3 to HK$3.30, citing sluggish ridership and rising operational costs.
It also hopes to hike concessionary fares: a 6.7 per cent increase in children’s fares from HK$1.50 to HK$1.60, and a 15.4 per cent rise in senior citizens’ fares from HK$1.30 to HK$1.50.
Monthly pass prices are proposed to remain unchanged.
The tram operator “is facing fierce competition from other public transport modes,” Stephen Cheung, chairman of the advisory committee, said in a statement published after the meeting.
He also pointed out that the number of passengers riding on trams had not recovered to pre-pandemic levels and the company’s supplemental income was also “quite volatile.”
In discussing the fare hike application, the committee took into account different factors, including the tram company’s “latest operation situation and financial forecast, improvement projects being implemented and public acceptability,” Cheung said.
Like with other fare increase applications, the committee “will submit its advice to the Government on the fare increase application from [Hong Kong Tramways] for consideration by the Chief Executive in Council,” he added.
Speaking to reporters after the meeting, he gave assurance that the fare adjustment would not have a major impact on passengers as long as the increase was not “too significant.”
Founded in 1904, Hong Kong Tramways boasts itself as the largest double-deck tram fleet in the world that is still in operation. The fleet, which has a total of 165 tramcars, carries an average of 150,000 passengers every day, the company said in February.
According to the Transport Department, Hong Kong Tramways carried an average of 134,000 passengers daily in 2023. The figure marked a 10.3 per cent drop, from 149,400 in 2019, before the city was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
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