South Island line (East) 南港島綫（東段）
Southbound train of the South Island line approachingOcean Park
Overview
Status	Operational
Owner	MTR Corporation
Locale	Districts:Southern,Central & Western
Termini	South Horizons Admiralty
Connecting lines	East Rail line Island line Tsuen Wan line
Stations	5
Color on map	Lime (#BAC429)
Service
Type	Light metro,driverless
System	MTR
Operator(s)	MTR Corporation
Depot(s)	Wong Chuk Hang
Rolling stock	CNR Changchun EMU (S-Train variant)
History
Opened	28 December 2016
Technical
Line length	7.4 km (4.6 mi)
Number of tracks	Double-track
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in)standard gauge
Electrification	1,500 V DC (Overhead lines)
Operating speed	Average: 38 km/h (24 mph) Maximum: 80 km/h (50 mph)[1]
Signalling	Alstom Urbalis 400CBTC (Cab signalling, GoA4:UTO)
Train protection system	ATP
Route map Legend East Rail line toLo Wu orLok Ma Chau Tsuen Wan line Central –Tsuen Wan Admiralty             Island line Kennedy Town –Chai Wan Nam Fung Tunnel Ocean Park Wong Chuk Hang Depot Wong Chuk Hang South Island line (West) toHKU Aberdeen Channel Bridge Lei Tung South Horizons This diagram: view talk edit

TheSouth Island line (Chinese:南港島綫) is a rapid transit line ofHong Kong'sMTRmetro system. This line connects the Hong Kongbusiness district fromAdmiralty station to theSouthern District ofHong Kong Island and the island ofAp Lei Chau, which was not served by any rail transport prior to the opening of the line.^[2] Approved by theExecutive Council in 2007,^[3] the line commenced service on 28 December 2016.^[4] It is indicated inLime on theMTR map. The rolling stock of the South Island line is purpose-built for driverless operation, with trains being remotely controlled from theOperations Control Centre inTsing Yi.

It is one of two lines to have 5 stations, the other one beingAirport Express (MTR).

It is the line to have the least interchanges until West South Island Line is approved to be made.

This line was known during planning and construction as the South Island line (East) to distinguish fromSouth Island line (West), which is still being planned.

The initial proposal for the line was developed in 2002, and went through a number of changes, at times combined with theWest Island line andSouth Island line (West). The final alignment corresponds with "option B" of the2005 revised scheme, with no intermediate station atHappy Valley included, in order to reduce the travel time to the central business district.

MTR defines the railway as amedium capacity system. The final order forrolling stock for the new line consisted of 10 new three-carMTR CNR Changchun EMUs using steel wheels. These trains are externally similar to the new existing sets in service on theKwun Tong line, but are fullyautomatic and driverless – the second such line in the MTR system after theDisneyland Resort line, and the third such line in Hong Kong.^[5] However, every train has at least one staff for patrol in the traffic hour who is qualified to control the train manually according to the requirements of theFire Services Department since the commencement of the line.^[6] Trains operate with a frequency of three minutes during rush hour.

South Island line begins in tunnel atAdmiralty station, an underground station connecting to the pre-existingTsuen Wan andIsland lines. From Admiralty the line travels southeastwards beneathMount Cameron through the 3.2 km (2.0 mi)Nam Fung Tunnel, emerging into a covered viaduct at a site between the portal ofAberdeen Tunnel andGleneagles Hospital, just beforeOcean Park station.

The line then continues west on aviaduct throughWong Chuk Hang andStaunton Creek overa nullah, on which theWong Chuk Hang station was built, and crossesthe channel to the island ofAp Lei Chau on theAberdeen Channel Bridge; after landing on Ap Lei Chau, the line enters a tunnel and continues toLei Tung and South Horizons stations.

This is a list of thestations on the South Island line.

List

Livery	Station Name		Images	Interchange; Adjacent transportation	Opening	District
	English	Chinese
South Island Line (East) (SEL)
	Admiralty	金鐘		Tsuen Wan line Island line East Rail line	28 December 2016; 8 years ago	Central and Western
	Ocean Park	海洋公園		—		Southern
	Wong Chuk Hang	黃竹坑		South Island (West)(proposed)
	Lei Tung	利東		—
	South Horizons	海怡半島

Station concourses are staffless, except those of Admiralty and Ocean Park stations. Customers are required to solve ticket problems with this Self Service Point machine. To its left is the information counter, which provides travel and street information only.

The trains do not have driver cabs, allowing passengers to see through the windows in the ends of the trains.

The public car park underneath Ocean Park station.

Agreements for MTR South Island line and the Kwun Tong line extension were signed by theHong Kong government andMTR Corporation on 18 May 2011.^[7] In August 2012, drilling and blasting work began for constructing the Nam Fung Tunnel, between Admiralty and Ocean Park stations.^[8] The line was built by aLeighton Asia –John Holland Group joint venture.^[9][10]

On 9 December 2013, structural work for Ocean Park station was completed.^[11][12] The first 3-car trainset arrived at MTR Siu Ho Wan Depot on 19 February 2014.^[13] The project was 78% complete by late September 2014, and Nam Fung Tunnel was broken through on 17 October.^[8] In 2015, trial runs began between Wong Chuk Hang and South Horizons stations. 84% of construction work was completed by the end of February 2015. Work in Lei Tung station was prolonged by geological problems.^[14]

The opening of the South Island line was originally planned for 2015. On 21 May 2014, an informant told Apple Daily that the commencement date of the line would be postponed by one and a half years. MTR Corporation asserted it would be opened as expected. Yet, the Transport and Housing Bureau revealed the delay of construction work and demanded MTR to review the commencement. Members of the Legislative Council and District Council criticised MTR for hiding the project's progress from the public and demanded a progress report at the Council's meeting.^[15] Eight days later at the South District Council meeting, MTRC announced the delay was caused by the expansion work of Admiralty station. High-density building, underground public facilities and the existing Admiralty station would prolong the work progress, as "safety comes first". However, the claimed 2015 opening date remained unchanged.^[16] In November 2014, a revised opening date of December 2016 was announced.^[17]

In October 2016, MTRC chairmanFrederick Ma warned that the opening of the South Island line could be delayed by three more months.^[18] However, on 10 November 2016, he announced the South Island line would open by the end of 2016, saying the engineering team overcame the many challenges in expanding Admiralty Station.^[19] Finally, MTRC chief executive Lincoln Leong officially declared the South Island line would begin operation on 28 December 2016.^[4]

On 28 December, before South Horizons station opened, many residents and enthusiasts gathered outside the entrance. MTR managerial officials, including CEO Lincoln Leong, welcomed passengers and rode on the first departure. The first train departed from South Horizons station at 5:55 am, five minutes earlier than usual. After 11 hours of operation, there had been over 92,000 passenger journeys.^[20] However, the day after the line opened, an electrical fault triggered power outages at 2:15 pm, causing lighting systems, escalators, elevators, and fare gates to stop working. The driverless trains were switched into manual mode in order to maintain service. Normal operation resumed after half an hour.^[21]

At Admiralty, a newisland platform was built underHarcourt Garden.^[22] Transfer passages connect the new station area with the olderTsuen Wan line andIsland line platforms, as well as theEast Rail line platforms.

At Wong Chuk Hang, the platform structure was planned to be a double island platform with three tracks (likeChoi Hung station). South Island line (West) trains would use the centre track while South Island line trains would use those on each side, allowing for convenientcross-platform interchanges. However, according to the final plan, any future South Island line (West) platforms were to be built above the existing platforms.

• Future projects of the MTR

Papers from Government and Legislature

• "Second Railway Development Study (RDS-2)"(PDF).Highways Department Hong Kong. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 7 February 2006. Retrieved27 February 2005.
• "Information paper about the Feb 2005 scheme"(PDF).Panel of Transport,Legislative Council. 21 February 2005. Retrieved27 February 2005.
• "Background brief on Route 4, South Hong Kong Island line and West Hong Kong Island line"(PDF). Panel of Transport, Legislative Council. 21 February 2005. Retrieved27 February 2005.
• "Presentation of Feb 2005 scheme by MTR"(PDF). Panel of Transport, Legislative Council. 25 February 2005. Retrieved5 March 2005.

Press releases

• "MTR Corporation welcomes Government's decision on West Island line and South Island line"(PDF). MTR Corporation. 30 June 2005.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toSouth Island line.

• MTR South Island line Introduction
• Papers from Legislative Council concerning West Island line and South Island line

• South Island line
• Standard-gauge railways in Hong Kong
• 1500 V DC railway electrification
• MTR lines
• Central and Western District, Hong Kong
• Southern District, Hong Kong
• Ap Lei Chau
• Railway lines opened in 2016
• 2016 establishments in Hong Kong

• Articles with Chinese-language sources (zh)
• CS1 Chinese-language sources (zh)
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use dmy dates from November 2018
• EngvarB from November 2018
• Articles containing Chinese-language text
• Articles containing traditional Chinese-language text
• Commons category link is on Wikidata