Trains for the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link will be named “Vibrant Express.”
The name for nine trains was chosen through a naming competition held by the MTR Corporation. It received 16,000 applications.
“The judging panel finally picked ‘動感’ [Vibrant Express] as the winning name as they considered that it can best demonstrate Hong Kong’s characteristics,” the company said.
MTRC Chair Frederick Ma said the project is 99 per cent complete and will aim to begin operating in September. He said further tests will be conducted by MTRC staff members next month.
The terminus will have at least 25 ticketing booths. According to reports, electronic devices such as monitors have yet to be installed.
Chief Executive Carrie Lam unveiled the name at a ceremony on Friday to mark the completion of main works.
She also rode a train from Shek Kong in the New Territories – where the depot is located – to the West Kowloon terminus.
She said that the eight-minute ride was smooth and quiet, and the train cabin was spacious.
Hong Kong will effectively give up its jurisdiction across a quarter of the new West Kowloon terminus, where immigration procedures will be performed by mainland law enforcement agents. The pro-democracy camp and the Hong Kong Bar Association have cast doubt over the constitutionality of the arrangement.
The Legislative Council held a nine-hour public hearing over the law which will enable the joint checkpoint arrangement last week.
“We heard that most members of the public and groups who attended the hearing hoped the rail service would operate as soon as possible. They, like us, urged lawmakers to complete the review of the bill as soon as possible,” Lam said.
