MTR Corporation Limited is a majority government-owned

public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

operator and

property developer in Hong Kong Since the British colonisation of Hong Kong in 1841 after the First Opium War, Hong Kong has grown from a stony outcrop on the southern coast of China to a territory whose property prices are among the highest in the world. The territory has a land ...

which operates the

Mass Transit Railway The Mass Transit Railway system, known locally by the initialism MTR, is a rapid transit system in Hong Kong and the territory's principal mode of Rail transport in Hong Kong, railway transportation. Operated by the MTR Corporation (MTRCL), ...

, the most popular public transport network in Hong Kong. It is listed on the Hong Kong Exchange and is a component of the

Hang Seng Index The Hang Seng Index (HSI) is a market-Capitalization-weighted index, capitalisation-weighted stock market index in Hong Kong adjusted for free float. It tracks and records daily changes in the largest stock listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exch ...

. The MTR additionally invests in railways across different parts of the world, including franchised contracts to operate rapid transit systems in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Beijing Beijing, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Peking, is the capital city of China. With more than 22 million residents, it is the world's List of national capitals by population, most populous national capital city as well as ...

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

Macao Macau or Macao is a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China (PRC). With a population of about people and a land area of , it is the most densely populated region in the world. Formerly a Portuguese colony, the ter ...

Shenzhen Shenzhen is a prefecture-level city in the province of Guangdong, China. A Special economic zones of China, special economic zone, it is located on the east bank of the Pearl River (China), Pearl River estuary on the central coast of Guangdong ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, and a suburban rail system in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

History

The Mass Transit Railway Corporation () was established on 22 September 1972 as a government-owned

statutory corporation A statutory corporation is a corporation, government entity created as a statutory body by statute. Their precise nature varies by jurisdiction, but they are corporations owned by a government or controlled by national or sub-national government ...

to build and operate a mass transit railway system to meet Hong Kong's public transport needs. On 30 June 2000, the MTRC was succeeded by the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL, ). As with the MTRC, the MTRCL's principal business is to operate the mass transit railway system. Following a successful

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...

, the MTRCL was listed on the

Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (, SEHK, also known as Hong Kong Stock Exchange) is a stock exchange based in Hong Kong. It is one of the largest stock exchanges in Asia and the List of major stock exchanges, 9th largest globally by market ...

on 5 October 2000, however, the government is still the majority stakeholder in the MTRCL.

Partial privatisation

On 11 September 2000, the financial secretary of the

Hong Kong Government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the ...

, Sir

Donald Tsang Sir Donald Tsang Yam-kuen (; born 7 October 1944) is a former Hong Kong civil servant who served as the second Chief Executive of Hong Kong from 2005 to 2012. Tsang joined the colonial civil service as an Executive Officer in 1967, occupyi ...

, announced the partial

privatisation Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation w ...

of MTR Corporation Limited. The offering was for one billion

shares In financial markets, a share (sometimes referred to as stock or equity) is a unit of equity ownership in the capital stock of a corporation. It can refer to units of mutual funds, limited partnerships, and real estate investment trusts. Sha ...

, but this was increased to 1.15 billion due to high demand. On 5 October 2000, the company was listed on the

with 600,000 shareholders. In June 2001, MTR was added to the

. At the time of the

, the company was operating with a surplus of

HK$ The Hong Kong dollar (, sign: HK$; code: HKD) is the official currency of Hong Kong. It is divided into 100 cents. Historically, it was also divided into 1000 mils. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority is the monetary authority of Hong Kong an ...

360 million (US$46.1 million), which had increased from a surplus of HK$278 million (US$35.6 million) in 1997. The MTR has continued to be one of the few profitable public transport systems in the world.

MTR–KCR merger

There had been some discussion of merging the

Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC; ) is a Government of Hong Kong, Hong Kong State-owned enterprise, wholly government-owned railway and land Asset management, asset manager. It was established in 1982 under the Kowloon-Canton Railw ...

(KCRC), which was also government-owned and the MTRCL to make the territory's transport system more efficient. The MTRCL backed such a merger while the KCRC opposed the plan. In March 2004, the Hong Kong Government officially encouraged the two companies to merge. On 11 April 2006, the Hong Kong Government officially announced the details of the proposed merger. Under the non-binding memorandum of understanding the government has signed with KCRC, KCRC would grant a service concession to the MTRCL to operate the

Kowloon–Canton Railway The Kowloon–Canton Railway (KCR; ) was a railway network in Hong Kong.Legislative Council information paper CB(1)357/07-08(0 THB(T) CR 8/986/00, CB(1)1749/07-08(0/ref> It was owned and operated by the Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation (KC ...

(KCR) system, with an initial period of 50 years. The KCRC would receive a one-time upfront payment of HK$4.25 billion, a fixed annual payment of HK$750 million and a variable annual payment based on revenues generated from operation of the KCR system. In addition, MTRCL would make a payment of $7.79 billion for the acquisition of property and other related commercial interests. The KCRC's lines were less profitable than those of the MTRC, and the KCRC was less active in property development. It was widely considered that the government's choice was to avoid being criticised for selling assets of the KCRC, which it wholly owned, to MTRCL for an unreasonably low price. Leasing the operation rights of the KCR system to the MTRCL avoided actually selling the KCRC. On 2 December 2007, the

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

name of the MTRCL was changed to ( "Hong Kong Railway Corporation Limited") after being granted the Service Concession while the English name will remain unchanged. The KCRC is now a holding company of the KCR system, without actual railway operations. The merger was approved by shareholders of the MTRCL on 9 October 2007. The merger is effective for 50 years. This also resulted in changing the system's Chinese name from "" ("Subway") to "" ("Hong Kong Railway"). All adult

Octopus Card The Octopus card ( zh, t=, j=baat3 daat6 tung1, is a reusable Contactless payment, contactless stored value smart card for making Electronic money, electronic payments in online or offline systems in Hong Kong. Launched in September 1997 to ...

holders would be the first to benefit from the merger.Railway Merger Proposal in Hong Kong Gets Green Light
Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in United States. Student and concessionary Octopus holders would also benefit from the merger by further reducing $0.1 from their 50% off fares.Fact Sheet (Eng)
Merger of the MTR and KCR systems. Student Octopus holders would continue to pay the current reduced concessionary fares on the MTR network. Elderly Octopus holders would be introduced to a new fare system which only the elderly can enjoy a $2 fare to anywhere on the MTR network (excluding Airport Express, Light Rail, and Cross-Boundary Stations).Elders ride on the MTR on Sundays and public holidays for just $2 for the whole journey

Revenue model

In July 2021,

Liber Research Community Liber Research Community is a non-governmental organization in Hong Kong that focuses on researching land and development policies. History The group was created in 2009 by postgraduates, including Chan Kim-ching, who studied geography and ...

, an NGO, produced a report which detailed the history of MTR's revenue model. In it, it reported that the "Rail + Property" development model was originally formed to offset unexpected financial difficulties with creating the original MTR lines, with original estimates that MTR's property would account for approximately 20 per cent of its total revenue. The Executive Council also determined that since MTR had to apply for land grants from the government, it was the government's decision on how land above MTR stations should be allocated, stating "the grant of comprehensive development rights on land affected by railway installations will be discretionary". Land above stations would not necessarily be used to build private housing to maximize MTR's revenue, but could be used to solve issues of

housing in Hong Kong Housing in Hong Kong varies by location and income. More than 7 million people live on about 1,108 km2 (427 mi2) of land in the region, making it one of the List of countries and dependencies by population density, densest places ...

, such as by developing public housing instead. The Executive Council also noted that "revenue from property development was not originally envisaged as being used as a means of financing the capital cost of the railway itself" and that revenue from property development was to be used for a "contingency reserve", such as for offsetting excessive construction costs. The report noted that as of 2017, 40 per cent of MTR's revenue is from property and that the original intent of using property revenue for contingency purposes had shifted into a different, unsustainable model where property is used to subsidise operations and the construction of new stations.

Senior leadership

* ''Chairman:'' Rex Auyeung (since July 2019) * ''Chief Executive:'' Jacob Kam (since April 2019)

List of former chairmen

# Sir Philip Haddon-Cave (1972–1974); project manager #Sir Norman Thompson (1974–1983); first official chairman # Sir Wilfrid Newton (1983–1989) #Hamish Mathers (1989–1995) # Jack So (1995–2003) # Raymond Ch'ien (2003–2015) #

Frederick Ma Frederick Ma Si-hang is a Hong Kong politician and administrator who was chairman of the MTR Corporation from 2015 to 2019. As a former Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of the Special Administrative Region of the People's Rep ...

(2016–2019)

List of former chief executives

''The position of Chief Executive was created in 1995.'' # Jack So (1995–2003) # Sir Chow Chung-kong (2003–2011) #

Jay Walder Jay Walder is an American transportation executive. He was the CEO of Hyperloop One, an American transportation technology company. He has been the CEO of Motivate, a bike sharing company, and of the Hong Kong transit company MTR Corporation (M ...

(2012–2014) # Lincoln Leong (2015–2019)

Operations by market

Hong Kong

On 5 October 2000 the operator of the MTR network, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC), became Hong Kong's first rail company to be partially

privatised Privatization (rendered privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation wh ...

, marking the beginning of the Hong Kong government's initiative to reduce its interests in public utilities. Prior to its listing on the

, the Mass Transit Railway Corporation (MTRC) was wholly owned by the Hong Kong government. MTR Corporation is responsible for the operation of MTR (and the

since 2 December 2007). The rail lines are profitable, but the MTR Corporation derives most of its profits from property development (usually adjacent to railway stations) and other commercial activities in Hong Kong, including the letting of retail and poster advertising space, ATM banking facilities, and personal telecommunication services .

Rail services

Mass Transit Railway (MTR) is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system currently (at September 2024) includes of rail with 167 stations, including 99 railway stations and 68 light rail stops. There are also several future projects. File:Hong Kong Railway Route Map en.svg, Map File:Long Ping Station.jpg, Station (

Long Ping station Long Ping () is an MTR station located in the northern part of Yuen Long Town to the southeast of Long Ping Estate, in the New Territories of Hong Kong. The station is elevated over Yuen Long Nullah. There are two public transport interc ...

) File:K411-E111 MTR Airport Express 22-06-2020.jpg, An Airport Express Train File:CRH380A-0259@GZN (20180923094804).jpg, High-speed rail service by MTR launched on 23 September 2018. The image shows an MTR

Vibrant Express Vibrant Express ( zh, t=動感號), also known as MTR CRH380A or MTR380A, is a high-speed train operated by Hong Kong government-owned public transport operator MTR. It was manufactured by Chinese state-owned manufacturer CRRC Qingdao Sifang, ...

train at

Guangzhou South railway station Guangzhounan (Guangzhou South) railway station () is located in Shibi, Panyu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China. It is a large modern railway station, rail terminal south of central Guangzhou. For a brief time it was Asia's largest ...

Property management

Property is one of the main businesses of the MTR, generating most of its profits. In 2009, with a net profit of HK$7.3 billion, MTR made HK$3.55 billion from property and HK$2.12 billion from transport operations. The MTR tries to develop suitable sites related to their new railway projects and their existing railway. For instance, the

reclaimed land Land reclamation, often known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamatio ...

situated in

West Kowloon West Kowloon (), named after West Kowloon Reclamation Project as a part of Airport Core Programme, is the western part of Kowloon Peninsula in Hong Kong, situated within the Yau Tsim Mong District and Sham Shui Po District. The Land reclam ...

owned by the MTR was developed into Union Square, a mixed-use development with residential, office, retail, and hotel space. The site includes the tallest commercial building in Hong Kong, the 118-storey

International Commerce Centre The International Commerce Centre is a 108-story, supertall skyscraper in West Kowloon, Hong Kong, resting atop the Elements mall and near two MTR Stations (Kowloon and Austin Station). It is the world's 13th tallest building by height, 1 ...

. Central's landmark International Finance Centre is managed by Premier Plus, MTR's elite property management brand.

=Shopping centres

= The MTR Corporation invested heavily to develop large shopping centres around MTR stations. The most recent example is the PopCorn mall located at

Tseung Kwan O station Tseung Kwan O (; : ) is a station on the MTR located at the town centre of the Tseung Kwan O New Town in the New Territories of Hong Kong. The previous station is and the line splits after this station to and . The entrances to the station a ...

. It is connected to the adjacent malls, high-end housing and hotels. Another example of such a shopping centre is

Maritime Square Maritime Square is a four-storey shopping centre located on Tsing Yi Island in Hong Kong. It was built and is owned by MTR Corporation (MTRC) in conjunction with the opening of Tsing Yi station. History The shopping centre opened on 1 A ...

located at

Tsing Yi station Tsing Yi is an interchange station of the MTR between the Tung Chung line and Airport Express on Tsing Yi Island in Hong Kong. The station is located between Sunny Bay station and Lai King station on the Tung Chung Line, and between Ai ...

. Maritime Square is a nautical-themed mall in which there are supermarkets,

boutique A () is a retail shop that deals in high end fashionable clothing or accessories. The word is French for "shop", which derives ultimately from the Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in anc ...

s, bookstores, a cinema, and restaurants. Since Tsing Yi station serves as the

transport hub A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between mode of transport, transport modes. Public transport hubs include train station, railway stations, metro station, rapid transit stations, bus ...

for

Tsing Yi Tsing Yi (), sometimes referred to as Tsing Yi Island, is an island in the New Territories of Hong Kong, to the northwest of Hong Kong Island and south of Tsuen Wan. With an area of , the island has been extended drastically by reclamation alo ...

, Maritime Square is also easily accessible by other transport means including buses and

taxis A taxis (; : taxes ) is the motility, movement of an organism in response to a Stimulus (physiology), stimulus such as light or the presence of food. Taxes are innate behavioural responses. A taxis differs from a tropism (turning response, often ...

. Other shopping centres developed and managed by the corporation include

CityLink CityLink is a network of tollways in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, linking the Tullamarine Freeway, Tullamarine, West Gate Freeway, West Gate and Monash Freeways and incorporating Bolte Bridge, Burnley Tunnel and other ...

, Elements, Hanford Plaza, Ocean Walk, Paradise Mall, Plaza Ascot, Sun Tuen Mun Shopping Centre,

Telford Plaza Telford () is a town in the Telford and Wrekin borough in Shropshire, England. The wider borough covers the town, its suburbs and surrounding towns and villages. The town is close to the county's eastern boundary, and near the River Severn. Th ...

The Lane "The Lane" is a song by American recording artist Ice-T. It was released in 1996 as a single from the rapper's sixth studio album '' Ice-T VI: Return of the Real'' through Records/Virgin Records. The song was written and produced by Tracy "Ice- ...

the LOHAS LOHAS Park () is a Hong Kong seaside private residential development of the MTR Corporation. Overlooking Junk Bay, it is located in Tseung Kwan O Area 86, New Territories. Name and concept Formerly named 'Dream City', it was renamed LOHAS ...

, and

Luk Yeung Galleria Luk Yeung Galleria (), formally known as Luk Yeung Sun Chuen Mall, is one of the largest shopping centres in Tsuen Wan, New Territories, Hong Kong, located in Luk Yeung Sun Chuen, above MTR Tsuen Wan station. It has a total area of . It was d ...

. As of 2023, MTR Corporation owns a total of 13 shopping malls across Hong Kong, classified into luxury, regional, and neighbourhood malls.

Sweden

MTR Nordic AB is a subsidiary of MTR Corporation UK based in

that operates in the public transportation sector through various subsidiaries. The CEO of MTR Nordic is Henrik Dahlin.

Current operations (ending November 2025)

* MTR Tunnelbanan AB (known as MTR Stockholm AB until June 2016) is responsible for the operation, planning and maintenance of the Stockholm Metro. In January 2009, Tunnelbanan Teknik Stockholm, a 50/50 joint venture between MTR and

Mantena Mantena may refer to: * Immediate Geographic Region of Mantena, Minas Gerais, Brazil ** Mantena, Minas Gerais, a municipality within the geographic region * Mantena (company), a Norwegian engineering company * Madhu Mantena Madhu Varma Mant ...

, was awarded the contract from

Storstockholms Lokaltrafik Storstockholms Lokaltrafik known as SL, () is the public transport organisation responsible for managing land-based public transport in Stockholm County, Sweden. SL oversees a network that includes the Stockholm Metro, ''Tunnelbana'' metro, Stock ...

(SL) to operate the network for eight years with an option to extend for another six years. MTR started operating the metro on 2 November 2009, and in September 2015 the six-year extension was granted. The current contract with SL for the metro extends to November 2025. In January 2016, MTR bought out its joint venture partner. The division has approximately 3,000 employees with Caroline Åstrand as its CEO.

Metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...

operations will be taken over in November 2025 by Connecting Stockholm AB. * MTR Tech AB, formerly Tunnelbanan Teknik Stockholm AB (TBT), carries out maintenance of the Stockholm Metro rolling stock. Its CEO is Erika Enestad.

Former operations

* MTR Express (Sweden) AB (2015–2024) operated long-distance trains between

and

Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...

as a private

open access operator In rail transport, an open-access operator is an operator that takes full commercial risk, running on infrastructure owned by a third party and buying paths on a chosen route and, in countries where rail services run under franchises, are not s ...

using the brand name MTRX. The service, operational since 21 March 2015, uses six X74 (

Stadler Flirt Stadler FLIRT (, ) is a passenger multiple unit trainset made by Stadler Rail of Switzerland. The baseline design of FLIRT is an electric multiple unit Articulated car, articulated trainset that can come in units of two to twelve cars with two t ...

) electric multiple units travelling at up to 200 km/h. The division had 90 employees based in both Stockholm and Gothenburg, led by CEO Joakim Sundh. Sold May 2024 to

VR Group VR-Group Plc (, ), commonly known as VR, is a government-owned railway company in Finland. VR's most important function is the operation of Finland's passenger rail services with 250 long-distance and 800 commuter rail services every day. With ...

* MTR Pendeltågen AB (2016–2024) was the operator of the

Stockholm commuter rail Stockholm commuter rail () is the commuter rail system in Stockholm County, Sweden. The system is an important part of the public transport in Stockholm, and is controlled by Storstockholms Lokaltrafik. The tracks are state-owned and administere ...

network between 11 December 2016 and 3 March 2024. MTR took overall responsibility for the network, trains, and stations in a contract for 10 years, with an option to extend for another four years. In November 2023, citing poor performance by MTR, SL decided to cut short the existing contract, and awarded an emergency contract to SJ, which took over the operation from March 2024. In November 2023 it was reported that MTR would pay a total fine of 800 million kronor (

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

76.8 million) to SL. This sum included 300 million SEK (

28.8 million) for penalties and contract breaches, and 280 million SEK (

26.9 million) to cover SL's extra expenses due to MTR's early termination. * MTR Mälartåg AB (2021–2024) was awarded the contract to run regional Mälartåg trains between 2021 and 2029. In July 2022, MTR Mälartåg was required to pay multi-million kronor penalties to Mälardalstrafik due to over 6,100 fully or partially cancelled train departures during the first half of the year. After facing continuing challenges, MTR decided in 2024 to terminate its Mälartåg contract five years early. Mälartåg operations were taken over in June 2024 by

Transdev Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a France-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020. Transdev was formed on 3 April 2011 via the merg ...

Australia

* Melbourne: In June 2009, the

Metro Trains Melbourne Metro Trains Melbourne, often known simply as Metro, is the operator and brand name of train services on the electrified metropolitan rail network serving the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is the largest urban rail network in Au ...

consortium of MTR (60%), John Holland and United Rail (20% each) were selected to operate the Melbourne suburban railway network, taking over from

Connex Melbourne Connex Melbourne was a train operator in Melbourne, Australia. Formed in July 1998 as Hillside Trains, a business unit of the Public Transport Corporation, it was privatised in August 1999 becoming a subsidiary of Veolia Transport, Connex. In ...

on 30 November 2009. In September 2016, the government opened negotiations with Metro Trains Melbourne to extend the contract for seven years until November 2024. * Sydney: In June 2014, Northwest Rapid Transit, a consortium consisting of MTR (60%),

John Holland Group The John Holland Group is an infrastructure, building, rail and transport business operating in Australia and New Zealand. Headquartered in Melbourne, it is a subsidiary of China Communications Construction. History The company was founded in ...

Leighton Contractors CIMIC Group Limited (formerly Leighton Holdings) is an engineering-led construction, mining, services and public private partnerships leader working across the lifecycle of assets, infrastructure and resources projects. History Founded in 194 ...

Plenary Group Plenary Group is an independent long term investor, developer and manager of public infrastructure, specialising in public–private partnerships. It was founded in 2004 by three former ABN Amro employees, with Deutsche Bank taking a 20% share ...

and

UGL Rail UGL Rail is an Australian rail company specialising in building, maintaining and refurbishing diesel locomotives, diesel and electric multiple units and freight wagons. It is a subsidiary of UGL (company), UGL and is based in Melbourne, with a s ...

, was selected to deliver the

Sydney Metro Northwest Sydney Metro North West was a rapid transit project that constructed the first section of the Metro Northwest and Bankstown Line through the north-western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The project included the conversion of ...

operations contract. As part of the consortium, MTR Corporation, John Holland and UGL Rail formed the

Metro Trains Sydney Metro Trains Sydney Pty. Limited (MTS) is the operator of the Sydney Metro North West & Bankstown Line. It is a joint venture between Hong Kong–based MTR Corporation, John Holland Group and UGL Rail formed in September 2014. It operates the ...

joint venture to operate services on the line for 15 years. The North West Rail Link opened in May 2019, and was extended through the CBD in August 2024.

Mainland China

MTR operates nine lines in three cities in mainland China.

Beijing

The company has also formed a joint-venture Beijing MTR Corporation Limited (Jinggang MTR) (49%) with Beijing Capital Group ("BCG") (49%) and the Beijing Infrastructure Investment Co ("BIIC") (2%) to build and operate for 30 years Line 4,

Daxing line The Daxing Line of the Beijing Subway () is a rapid transit line that connects the southern Daxing District of the city with the subway network. It extends Line 4 south from its southern terminus at Gongyixiqiao, on the 4th Ring Road in Fengtai ...

, Line 14, Line 16 and Line 17 of the

Beijing Subway The Beijing Subway is the rapid transit system of Beijing Direct-controlled municipality, Municipality that consists of 29 lines including 24 rapid transit lines, two airport rail links, one maglev line and two light rail, light rail tram line ...

Hangzhou

The company formed a new joint-venture Hangzhou MTR (Hanggang MTR) with Hangzhou Metro Group in 2012 to operate Line 1 of the

Hangzhou Metro The Hangzhou Metro () is a rapid transit system that serves Hangzhou, the capital city of Zhejiang province, China. The system opened on November 24, 2012. It is the 17th city in China to operate a rapid transit system. Network There are curre ...

for 28 years, in which MTR holds 49% of the stock, while Hangzhou Metro Group holds the other 51% of the stock. Line 5 of the

is operated by Hangzhou MTR Line 5 Ltd., which MTR holds 60% of the stock.

Shenzhen

The company concluded initials concession agreement to build phase 2 of the Line 4 of the

Shenzhen Metro The Shenzhen Metro ( zh, s=深圳地铁, c=, labels=no) is the rapid transit system for the city of Shenzhen in Guangdong province, China. The newest lines and extensions which opened on December 27, 2024 put the network at of trackage. It cu ...

, and to operate the whole line on a

BOT Bot or BOT may refer to: Sciences Computing and technology * Chatbot, a computer program that converses in natural language * Internet bot, a software application that runs automated tasks (scripts) over the Internet **Spambot, an internet bot ...

basis for 30 years from 1 July 2010. The phase 2 of Line 4 have been in operation for passengers since 16 June 2011. Line 13, which began operation on 28 December 2024, is also operated by MTR Corporation (Shenzhen).

Former operations

United Kingdom

Elizabeth line The Elizabeth line is a railway line that runs across Greater London and nearby towns, operating similarly to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries. It runs services on dedicated infras ...

: In May 2015, TfL Rail began an eight-year contract to operate the

Crossrail Crossrail is a completed railway project centred on London. It provides a high-frequency hybrid commuter rail and rapid transit system, akin to the Réseau Express Régional, RER in Paris and the S-Bahn systems of German-speaking countries, kn ...

concession in London, with an option for a further two years. Before the new railway lines opened, MTR already operated Liverpool Street–

Shenfield Shenfield is a suburb of Brentwood, Essex, Brentwood in the Borough of Brentwood, Essex, England. In 2020, it was estimated to have a population of 5,396. History The former village, by the church and Green Dragon public house, pub, lies alo ...

and

Paddington Paddington is an area in the City of Westminster, in central London, England. A medieval parish then a metropolitan borough of the County of London, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Paddington station, designed b ...

–

Heathrow Airport Heathrow Airport , also colloquially known as London Heathrow Airport and named ''London Airport'' until 1966, is the primary and largest international airport serving London, the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdo ...

services branded as

TfL Rail TfL Rail was the concession which operated commuter services on two separate railway lines in London, England and its environs whilst the Crossrail construction project linking these lines was underway. It ran from 2015 until May 2022, upon t ...

. In May 2022 services commenced between Paddington and

Abbey Wood Abbey Wood is an List of areas of London, area in southeast London, England, in the Royal Borough of Greenwich and bordering the London Borough of Bexley. It is located east of Charing Cross. According to the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 ...

via Liverpool Street, and all services were renamed ''Elizabeth line''. , the Elizabeth line is operated by MTR Elizabeth line under a contract with TfL which will expire in May 2025. It is also the line's first operator. In November 2024,

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

announced that MTR has lost its bid to renew the operation of the Elizabeth line to

GTS Rail Operations GTS Rail Operations is a train operating company owned by Go-Ahead Group, Tokyo Metro and Sumitomo Corporation that commenced operating the Elizabeth line concession on 25 May 2025. History In February 2024, Transport for London shortlisted four ...

. Subsequently, GTS Rail Operations took over Elizabeth Line operations from 25 May 2025 onwards. *

London Overground London Overground (also known simply as the Overground) is a Urban rail in the United Kingdom, suburban rail network serving London and its environs. Established in 2007 to take over Silverlink Metro routes, it now serves a large part of Greate ...

: MTR and

Laing Rail Arriva UK Trains Limited is the company that oversees Arriva's train operating companies in the United Kingdom. It gained its first franchises in February 2000. These were later lost, though several others were gained. In January 2010, with the ...

established a 50/50 joint venture ( MTR Laing) to bid for the

concession. MTR Laing won the bid and trading as

London Overground Rail Operations London Overground Rail Operations Limited was a train operating company contracted to operate the London Overground train service on the National Rail network, under the franchise control of Transport for London. The company was a 50/50 joint ...

operated the concession from November 2007. After Laing Rail and

Arriva UK Trains Arriva UK Trains Limited is the company that oversees Arriva's Train operating company, train operating companies in the United Kingdom. It gained its first Rail franchising in Great Britain, franchises in February 2000. These were later lost, ...

were brought under the ownership of

Deutsche Bahn (, ; abbreviated as DB or DB AG ) is the national railway company of Germany, and a state-owned enterprise under the control of the German government. Headquartered in the Bahntower in Berlin, it is a joint-stock company ( AG). DB was fou ...

in 2007 and 2010 respectively, Arriva took over the Laing Rail's share of the concession. In June 2015, MTR was shortlisted to bid for the next London Overground concession in its own right, but lost out to its previous partner, Arriva.

Arriva Rail London Arriva Rail London is a train operating company owned by Arriva UK Trains that operates the London Overground concession on behalf of Transport for London. History In April 2015, Transport for London placed a notice in the '' Official Journa ...

took over full operation in November 2016. *

South Western Railway South Western Railway Limited, trading as South Western Railway (SWR), is the British state-owned train operating company that took over the services of the South Western Railway (2017–2025), operator of the same name from FirstGroup and MTR ...

: In August 2017, South Western Railway, in which MTR has a 30% shareholding in a joint venture with

FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland.South Western franchise South Western was a Rail franchising in Great Britain, railway franchise for the provision of passenger services from London Waterloo railway station, London Waterloo to destinations in Surrey, Hampshire, Somerset, Dorset, Berkshire, Wiltshire ...

. In December 2024, it was announced that the franchise was to be renationalised in May 2025.

Unsuccessful or withdrawn bids

*In 2004, MTR in a joint venture with

Sea Containers Sea Containers was a Bermudan registered company which operated two primary business areas: transport and Shipping container, container leasing. It was founded in 1965 by James Sherwood and was initially focused on the leasing of cargo containe ...

unsuccessfully bid for the Integrated Kent franchise. *In 2007, MTR was shortlisted to bid for the West Midlands franchise, but did not lodge a bid. *In February 2009, MTR Corporation were shortlisted to operate the

Tyne & Wear Metro The Tyne and Wear Metro is an overground and underground light rail rapid transit system serving Newcastle upon Tyne, Gateshead, North Tyneside, South Tyneside, and the City of Sunderland (together forming Tyne and Wear). The owners Nexus have ...

concession in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

. *In November 2013, MTR was announced as a bidder for the

ScotRail ScotRail Trains Limited, trading as ScotRail (), is a Scottish train operating company that is publicly owned by Scottish Rail Holdings on behalf of the Scottish Government. It has been operating the ScotRail franchise as an operator of las ...

franchise. *In April 2016, MTR was again shortlisted to bid for the West Midlands franchise, however again withdrew. *In October 2016, MTR was shortlisted to operate the

Wales & Borders franchise The Wales & Borders franchise () is a railway franchise for passenger services in the United Kingdom operated since 7 February 2021 by publicly owned operator, Transport for Wales Rail. The franchise covers the majority of rail services in W ...

. *In June 2017 a joint venture between MTR and Guangshen Railway Company was shortlisted to bid for the

West Coast Partnership The West Coast Partnership (WCP) is a railway franchise in the United Kingdom for passenger trains on the West Coast Main Line (WCML) (and branches thereof), between London Euston, the West Midlands, Shropshire, North Wales, Liverpool, Manch ...

franchise to commence in 2019. In December 2018 Spanish operator

Renfe Operadora Renfe (, ), officially Renfe-Operadora, is Spain's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. It was created in 2005 upon the split of the former Red Nacional de los Ferrocarriles Españoles, Spanish National Railway Netwo ...

joined their bid, with

Snowfall Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

as a software subcontractor. In August 2019, it was announced that MTR was unsuccessful in the bid, losing to a joint bid by First and Trenitalia. *In November 2024, MTR lost its bid to renew the operating contract of the Elizabeth line, losing to a joint bid by

Go-Ahead Group Go-Ahead Group Limited is a Multinational corporation, multi-national transport group based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. While the majority of its operations are within Great Britain, it also operates services in Ireland, Australia, Singapo ...

Tokyo Metro The Tokyo Metro () is a major rapid transit system in Tokyo, Japan, operated by the #Organization, Tokyo Metro Co. With an average daily ridership of 6.52 million passengers (as of 2023), the Tokyo Metro is the larger of the Tokyo subway, two s ...

and

Sumitomo Corporation is one of the largest worldwide '' sōgō shōsha'' general trading companies, and is a diversified corporation. The company was incorporated in 1919 and is a member company of the Sumitomo Group. It is listed on three Japanese stock exchange ...

Macau

MTR Railway Operations (Macau) Company Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of MTR Corporation, operated the

Taipa line The Taipa line (; ) is the first line in Macau Light Rapid Transit. The line initially opened on 10 December 2019, providing service between and as the first phase of the Taipa line. The automated guideway transit line has a U-shaped route wi ...

of the

Macau Light Rapid Transit The Macau Light Rapid Transit (MLRT, zh, 澳門輕軌系統; , MLM) is a mass transit system in Macau and the first railway system of the city. The first phase of the project's construction began in February 2012, and the first section of the Taip ...

(MLRT or MLM) in Macau since the line's opening on 10 December 2019 until 2024. MTR was contracted to operate and maintain the line for 80 months. However in 2024, MTR has gradually handed over the operations to Sociedade do Metro Ligeiro de Macau, S.A., an operator owned by the government of Macau Special Administrative Region.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Companies listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange Government-controlled corporations of Hong Kong Hong Kong brands Land developers of Hong Kong Multinational companies headquartered in Hong Kong Railway companies of Hong Kong 1972 establishments in Hong Kong Transport companies established in 1972 Beijing Subway Hangzhou Metro Shenzhen Metro Light rail in Macau Transport companies of Australia Transport operators of Sweden Transport operators of the United Kingdom Government-owned railway companies Transport operators of Hong Kong