The Phase I LRV is the first Light Rail train to be put into service. It is fully owned by the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation and leased to the MTR Corporation for operation after rail merger.
Introduction[]
There are 70 cars in the first phase, which were put into service when the first phase of 1988 when Light Rail was opened to traffic, numbered from 1001 to 1070, and the body was painted with Predominantly orange and white, being KCRC's older livery. These cars can be distinguished from other LRVs by their rear emergency window, while subsequent orders of LRVs have a rear emergency door.
1013 was seriously damaged in a traffic accident in 1994 and was eventually scrapped; 1027 was seriously damaged in an accident in 2011 and was decommissioned two years later for special use[2] and was lifted onto a lorry on 29 October 2022 and removed in the early hours of the following morning; 1014 was seriously damaged in an accident in 2021 and was decommissioned without public announcement one year later for use as a utility room.
The first train arrived in October 1987.
In 1991, KCRC added handrails and removed some seats in this type of carriage, [3]; and in 1992 to improve the air-conditioning system at a cost of HK$202 million, the project was completed in March 1993. [4][5]
From 1997 to 2000, the first-generation LRVs were successively put on a newer livery, mainly blue and red similar to those of the IKK SP1900 EMUs. This also included the installation of a next stop reporting system. Seat belts and backrests have been added to the multi-purpose spaces of all LRVs.
Unlike other LRVs, there is no emergency exit door at the rear of the Phase 1 LRV, which is replaced by an emergency exit window.
As the first generation of LRVs were equipped with escape windows only and the floor of the train was more than one metre away from the track, passengers escaping through the train doors might fall and be injured as a result, the KCRC invested $1.7 million to install a foldable escape ladder under the doors of 69 trains, so that in the event of an accidental stoppage of a train at the track, the train captain could release the ladder within one minute and the passengers could escape safely in case of an accident without having to jump down from the train compartments, which were two to three feet away from the ground. In view of the experience gained from the arson case in the MTR, the ventilation windows in the first and second generation Light Rail Transit trains can only be opened by drivers and firemen with a Phillips screwdriver, which makes it difficult for passengers to open the windows by themselves in an emergency, the KCRC has decided to replace the locks on the ventilation windows with windows which can be opened with one hand, so that passengers can open the windows with their own bare hands without the need for any special tools, and would increase air circulation in the compartment when necessary.[6][7][8][9][10]
Named LRVs[]
1004 was named "Light Rail Pioneer" (輕鐵先鋒) because it was the first LRV to arrive in Hong Kong (arriving at the end of 1987) and was able to move under its own power. 1070 was named "F.D. Snell" (史禮賢) to commemorate Mr. F.D. Snell's contribution to the construction of the Light Rail system, also being the last of the original 70 LRVs to enter service, receiving a plaque in his honour. Train No. 1027 was temporarily named "輕鐵愛心號" in Chinese on 24 June 1994 and converted into a temporary mobile blood donation station in response to the Hong Kong Red Cross Society campaign.
In 2011, both 1004 and 1070 were refurbished and there were no signs of the names "Light Rail Pioneer" and "F.D. Snell" in the cab of the LRVs.
Light Rail 35th Anniversary retro livery[]
In August 2023, 1066 was repainted in the Light Rail Depot in the restored orange and white colours of the opening of the LR and the seats were repainted orange to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the opening of the Light Rail. In addition, 1001 was repainted in orange and white and its seats were repainted in orange.
Destination display[]
Initially, train route signs used roller-type cloth signs (or simply rollsigns) to indicate the destination and route number, both of which were printed on the same piece of cloth. When viewed from outside or inside the train, the route signs showed the name of the destination in English at the top and Chinese at the bottom of the left side, and the route number in orange at the right side, and there was no indication of the route at the rear of the train. Subsequently, a passenger complained to a newspaper in 1999 that there was no route display at the rear of the bus, making it impossible for the passenger to see the route clearly and hence missing a train; at that time, the KCRC said that it could not install such a display due to technical problems, but said that it would keep a record of the case for future reference.[11]
On 28 October 2002, the first train equipped with orange electronic route display boards and additional route display boards on the rear of the train (train number 1010) was put into service[12], and the remaining 98-car Phase I and Phase II trains were subsequently replaced with route display boards, at a cost of HK$7 million.
Modernisation refurbishment works[]
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The second LRV (1058) to have refurbishment works completed (July 2011)
At the same time as the Phase IV LRV contract was awarded, the KCRC also awarded a contract for the refurbishment of train compartments. Both contracts were awarded to United Group of Companies in Australia. The refurbishment work would commence after the Phase 4 trains have been fully commissioned and six of the trains would be refurbished to a design similar to that of the Phase 4 trains.
On 24 December 2013, Phase I LRV refurbishment was fully completed. 1045 was retrofitted with loudspeakers at the doors for testing the external broadcasting system, which were removed after the modernisation works due to unsatisfactory results.[13]
MTR-ization of trains[]
Currently, MTR-ization of all Phase I LRVs are fully completed[14][15], with 1017 also being the first LRV to be replaced with MTR-style announcements on a trial basis.[16]
1016 and 1036 retained the original MTR-ised stickers after the refurbishment, which was later replaced to the newer version in line with other LRVs.
Related events/incidents[]
Serious accidents[]
Retired trains[]
1013[]
At around 10am on 29 July 1994, a Route 507 LRV towards Tuen Mun Ferry Pier (1013) collided with a lorry towing a semi trailer at the junction of Wu King Road and Wu Shan Road (intersection code "J2"), resulting in 1 death and 4 injuries.[17] It was retired following the accident and kept as a spare parts donor, until 2001 when it was scrapped.[18]
1027[]
1027 which was involved in the accident
On 8 May 2011, at around 10:00 a.m., a traffic accident occurred between a Route 706 Tin Shui Wai-bound coupled-set LRV (1027 and 1062) and a container truck at the junction between Tin Yuet and [[Stop (Light Rail)|]] (Tin Shing Road/Tin Wah Road, Code M), resulting in 23 people being injured. The train involved in the accident, 1027, was formally decommissioned in 2013, restored in 2014[19] and has been parked at the Tuen Mun Depot for warehousing purposes[20][21], making it the only Phase I LRV that has not been refurbished. On 29 October 2022, 1027 was finally lifted onto a truck and transported away in the early hours of the following morning.[22]
1014[]
At 1:00 p.m. on 4 February 2021, an LRV (1014) travelling on Route 751 towards Tin Yat collided with a lorry at Kwong Tin Street near Light Rail Chung Uk Tsuen Stop, Tuen Mun, and derailed, causing minor injuries to about 22 people in the accident.[23][24] The LRV involved in the accident was not restored due to mechanical and age problems, and because the MTR was introducing Phase V LRVs to the service at the time, it became the third spare part train, and the first of all refurbished Phase I LRVs to be retired from service.
Vandalism[]
On 4 October 2019, at around 8:00 pm, an out-of-service coupled-set LRV (1037 and 1068) was criminally damaged by protesters at Tuen Mun Ferry Pier Stop, with the door glass cracked and the driver's compartment opened up, and had been returned to the depot for repairs and resumption of service until December of the same year.
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ See LRV 1013 accident in 1994 and 2011 LRV derailment accident.
- ↑ Related photo, MTRiders, Facebook.
- ↑ The "Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation 1991 Report" (Hong Kong: Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, 1992), p.35.
- ↑ "Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation Annual Report 1992" (Hong Kong: Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, 1993), p.17.
- ↑ Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation 1993 Report (Hong Kong: Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, 1994), p. 26.
- ↑ "三鐵車廂加逃生設備" (Escape equipment to be installed across 3 railway networks), Sing Tao Daily, 12 July 2004.
- ↑ "九鐵斥500萬改善列車逃生設施" (KCRC invests HK$5m on improving train escape equipment), Sing Pao, 12 July 2004.
- ↑ "輕鐵斥資加設逃生梯" (LR to invest on addition of escape ladders), Wen Wei Po, 12 July 2004.
- ↑ "東鐵輕鐵添安全防襲 加固艙門 增逃生梯" (Driving cab doors on East Rail and Light Rail to be reinforced with escape ladders installed), Oriental Daily News, 12 July 2004.
- ↑ "九鐵擬斥500萬改善車廂設計" (KCRC to spend HK$5m on improving train compartment design), Hong Kong Economic Times, 12 July 2004.
- ↑ "每要追趕上前察看乘客埋怨不便 建議輕鐵車尾加路線牌" (LR Passengers complained about inconvenience on checking routes in the front, suggests route signs at the rear end of LRVs), Sing Pao, 18 October 1999.
- ↑ "輕鐵快訊", October 2002.
- ↑ Legislative Council Paper No. CB(2)2371/10-11(05).
- ↑ #9, 港鐵化第三期輕鐵列車, Discuss.
- ↑ #406-408, 輕鐵第四代(United Group)列車討論, Discuss.
- ↑ 1仔港鐵化廣播嫁到：輕鐵614P綫1017@225鳳地站報站, YouTube.
- ↑ 輕鐵 1013, YouTube.
- ↑ 香港鐵路車輛網 > 九廣輕鐵 > 第一期列車
- ↑ It is believed to have come from old components removed from the same phase of LRV during refurbishment.
- ↑ Related photo, MTRiders, Facebook.
- ↑ Related post by "輕鐵迷 Light Rail Fans" facebook page (Chinese)
- ↑ Related photo, Riders, Facebook.
- ↑ 撼輕鐵釀20傷 貨車剷落軌 (Lorry plunged onto tracks after colliding with LRV and injuring 20), Oriental Daily News, 5 February 2021.
- ↑ 屯門鍾屋村站751號輕鐵與貨車相撞 22人受傷 4條輕鐵線須改道 (LRV on Route 751 collided with lorry at Chung Uk Tsuen Stop, Tuen Mun, leaving 22 injured - 4 LR routes diverted), HK01, 4 February 2021.
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