The Northern Link is a proposed

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be ...

line of the

MTR The Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is a major public transport network serving :Hong Kong. Operated by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL), it consists of heavy rail, light rail, and feeder bus service centred on a 10-line rapid transit network ...

system of

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...

which would connect the

Tuen Ma line The Tuen Ma line () is a rapid transit line that forms part of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. Coloured brown on the map, the Tuen Ma line is in length, making it the longest line of the MTR network. It has a total o ...

and the

Lok Ma Chau Spur Line The Lok Ma Chau Spur Line is the second railway link between Hong Kong and Mainland China, relieving passenger congestion at Lo Wu station. The alignment branches off the existing MTR East Rail line north of Sheung Shui station and th ...

of the

East Rail line The East Rail line () is one of ten lines of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. It used to be one of the three lines of the Kowloon–Canton Railway (KCR) network. It was known as the KCR British Section () from 1910 to 199 ...

. The link would also serve as a connection to the border checkpoint to

mainland China "Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the China, People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming Island, Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territorie ...

for passengers to and from the western

New Territories The New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory, and contains around half of the population of Hong Kong. Historically, it ...

.Legislative Council - Northern Link and Regional Express
February 2006 The Northern Link would start at Kam Sheung Road and end at Lok Ma Chau and Kwu Tung, and would be constructed either as a direct shuttle or with intermediate stations. Other benefits for constructing this project are that it would significantly cut journey times for certain trips (for example from

Yuen Long Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north N ...

Fanling Fanling ( zh, t=粉嶺; also spelled Fan Ling or Fan Leng) is a town in the New Territories East of Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the North District. Fanling Town is the main settlement of the Fanling area. The name Fanling is ...

) 2020: approx. 20 stations When it is completed: approx. 5 stations and significantly reduce costs for these trips, and also relieve the large number of passengers using the East Rail line by diverting some passengers to the West Rail line (now known as the Tuen Ma line). According to the Railway Development Strategy 2014, a shuttle service between Kam Sheung Road station and Kwu Tung station spanning is expected to begin construction in 2018 and be inaugurated in 2023.''Railway Development Strategy 2014''
Transport and Housing Bureau, Hong Kong Government

Phases

The Northern Link (NOL) project is expected to consist of two phases.

Phase 1

Phase 1 consists of the construction and completion of Kwu Tung station that will initially serve the

after its opening, then later the Northern Link after the completion of Phase 2. It had been partially built by

KCR Corporation The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC; ) is a Hong Kong wholly government-owned railway and land asset manager. It was established in 1982 under the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation Ordinance for the purposes of operating the Kowloon– ...

during the construction of the

. Construction of Kwu Tung station was approved by the government in 2022 is scheduled to commence in 2023 with completion due in 2027.

Phase 2

Phase 2 consists of building of Northern Link main line tracks from Kam Sheung Road station to Kwu Tung station. It also includes the construction of 3 new stations (Au Tau, Ngau Tam Mei and San Tin) along with the expansion of Kam Sheung Road station to accommodate for the new tracks and platforms. Planning and designing began in 2021. Construction of the mainline is planned to begin in 2025 and be completed in 2034.

Land hoarding

In July 2021, Liber Research Community found that developers had begun to hoard land alongside the Northern Link line, buying at least 80 hectares of land near the line.

Stations

2021 HK Policy Address Proposed Railway Map

References

External Links

MTR Northern Link Project Website
{{Eastern Guangdong & Hong Kong transit MTR lines Standard gauge railways in Hong Kong Proposed railway lines in Hong Kong