Sha Tin New Town, or known as Sha Tin-Ma On Shan New Town or Sha Tin Town is one of the

satellite town Satellite cities or satellite towns are smaller municipalities that are adjacent to a principal city which is the core of a metropolitan area. They differ from mere suburbs, subdivisions and especially bedroom communities in that they have m ...

s and

new town New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator ...

s of Hong Kong. It is within the

Sha Tin District Sha Tin District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. As one of the 9 districts located in the New Territories, it covers the areas of Sha Tin, Tai Wai, Ma On Shan, Fo Tan, Siu Lek Yuen, and Ma Liu Shui. The district is the most po ...

, the

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 ...

. The New Town covers the neighbourhoods such as Sha Tin, Tai Wai,

Fo Tan Fo Tan is an area of Sha Tin District, New Territories, Hong Kong. It was developed as a light industrial area, but this activity has declined markedly in recent years. There are residential areas to the east, alongside the MTR line, and in the ...

, Tai Shui Hang,

Ma On Shan Ma On Shan may refer to: * Ma On Shan (peak) ( zh, t=馬鞍山, s=马鞍山, l=saddle peak, links=no), a mountain in the New Territories of Hong Kong * Ma On Shan (town), a New Town in the New Territories on the foot of Ma On Shan mountain * Ma On ...

. The Shing Mun River runs through the middle of the town.

Development history

Development was started in the 1970s, and currently covers an area of 35.87 square kilometres with total developed area of about . As of 2004, it has a population of around 640,000 people. The town centre houses a mall, New Town Plaza, the Sha Tin Public Library, Sha Tin Town Hall, and other community facilities.

Transport

Highways, roads and tunnels

The road transport between Shatin and Kowloon relies on the Lion Rock Tunnel (completed in 1967),

Tate's Cairn Tunnel Tate's Cairn Tunnel is a four-lane road tunnel in Hong Kong. Constructed as part of Route 2, it links Diamond Hill, New Kowloon with Siu Lek Yuen, Sha Tin, New Territories East. It opened on 26 June 1991. Its toll plaza is situated on the ...

(completed in 1988), Shing Mun Tunnel, and Tai Po Road. The Tolo Highway was opened in September 1985. It connects Sha Tin Road and Tai Po Road, forming a connection system between the New Town and Tai Po New Town. Tate's Cairn Highway also connects Ma On Shan with Tolo Highway. The opening of Sai Sha Road in October 1988 provided a connection between Sha Tin and Sai Kung. The T3 Highway ( Tsing Sha Highway) and Route No. 8 (Cheung Sha Wan to Sha Tin section) was completed in March 2008.

Public transport

The New Town has numerous bus routes connecting to the city centre and metro station from various populated zone in the Town. Beside bus services, minibus services are provided as well for residential areas with fewer people.

KCR (now East Rail line, MTR)

KCR, since merged with the former

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 ...

, was essential to the development of new town. There are five

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 ...

stations within the new town, namely Tai Wai, Sha Tin, Fo Tan, Racecourse and University ( Chinese University). Part of 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 ...

also lies within the district, which connects Hin Keng (situated at the southwestern part of Tai Wai) and Wu Kai Sha of Ma On Shan (situated at the northeastern part of Lee On Estate). Passengers can transfer to East Rail line at

Tai Wai station Tai Wai station is an interchange station on the and the of the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) system in Hong Kong. The station is located in Tai Wai, Sha Tin District. History The station opened in a temporary location on 15 August 1983 ...

Urban planning

Despite Sha Tin New Town including Ma On Shan, and the town itself is sometimes known as Sha Tin-Ma On Shan, Ma On Shan town has its own urban planning plan or Outline Zoning Plan (OZP), the "Ma On Shan Outline Zoning Plan". The plan was amended most recently in 2020. Neighbourhoods such as Sha Tin, Tai Wai,

are included in the "Sha Tin Outline Zoning Plan". The

Science Park A science park (also called a "university research park", "technology park”, "technopark", “technopole", or a "science and technology park" (STP)) is defined as being a property-based development that accommodates and fosters the growt ...

- Pak Shek Kok development, also located in Sha Tin New Town, has its own OZP too, but part of the area of that development is included in

Tai Po District Tai Po District is one of the 18 districts of Hong Kong. The suburban district covers the areas of Tai Po New Town (including areas such as Tai Po Market, , Tai Po Industrial Estate, Tai Wo Estate), Tai Po Tau, Tai Po Kau, Hong Lok Yuen, ...

References

External links

{{Coord, 22.380238, 114.189835, region:HK_type:city_scale:5000_source:Wikimapia, display=title 1970s establishments in Hong Kong Sha Tin District New towns in Hong Kong New towns started in the 1970s