Lo Wu Station

Lo Wu 羅湖
MTR rapid transit station
Platform 2
Location	Lo Wu Station Road, Lo Wu North District, Hong Kong
Coordinates	22°31′42″N 114°06′48″E / 22.5283°N 114.1134°E / 22.5283; 114.1134Coordinates: 22°31′42″N 114°06′48″E / 22.5283°N 114.1134°E / 22.5283; 114.1134
Owned by	Kowloon–Canton Railway Corporation
Operated by	MTR Corporation
Line(s)	East Rail Line
Platforms	4 (Spanish solution: 2 side platforms and island platform)
Tracks	2
Connections	Main line Shenzhen Railway Station, Shenzhen Metro Line 1 Luohu Station
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Platform levels	1
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	LOW
History
Opened	14 October 1949 (1949-10-14)
Electrified	1983
Traffic
Passengers (2012)	240,000 daily entries and exits[1]
Services
Preceding station   MTR   Following station Sheung Shui towards Hung Hom East Rail Line Terminus Across Hong Kong boundary Preceding station   Shenzhen Metro   Following station Guomao toward Airport East Luobao Transfer at: Luohu Terminus
Location
Lo Wu Location within the MTR system

Lo Wu Station is the northern terminus of the East Rail Line (Kowloon-Canton Railway) of Hong Kong, located in Lo Wu within the Closed Area on Hong Kong's northern frontier. The station serves as a primary checkpoint for rail passengers between Hong Kong and mainland China and vice versa, rather than serving a specific residential/commercial area like the other stations do. It is also the northernmost railway station in Hong Kong.

When the Kowloon-Canton Railway first went into service, trains did not stop at Lo Wu, as there was no border patrol at the time.^[2] However, shortly after the People's Republic of China was created in October 1949, the KCR announced that trains would terminate at Lo Wu, and that passengers would be able to cross the border on foot.

Refurbishment work of the station started in 2002 and new facilities such as a group waiting area and new ticket gates were introduced. Since 28 December 2004, this station also serves as the interchange station for the Shenzhen Metro Luohu station, which shares the same Chinese name.

This station is also unique to rail systems of any kind in that sliding doors limit the number of people that are allowed on the platform. Two large glass sliding doors close after about a minute elapses from the time the train pulls in for boarding. These doors are located after the area for validating at the ticket barriers, but before the platforms area. Even with this system in place, passengers may have to wait for the next train to arrive before they can travel back towards Hung Hom, as alternate trains pull into each paired platform. This layout makes use of the Spanish solution.

Timetable

Station layout

Platform 4 was built in 2004 to accommodate increasing patronage. Before the completion of refurbishment works, trains would stop at the island platform for simultaneous alighting and boarding. The platform was always crowded during the time. The building of platform 4 and converting platform 1 (which was rarely used before the refurbishment) for boarding smoothened passenger flow. Ever since, trains have been emptied with doors opened towards platforms 2 and 3 for passengers getting off; afterwards, the doors are opened to platforms 1 and 4 for boarding passengers.

This particular system of loading/unloading is popular in Europe and many US subway systems and named the Spanish solution.

^[4]

Entrances/exits

The station has three exits:^[5]

• The Lo Wu Immigration Control Point, where passengers enter Mainland China. Passengers must have valid travel documents to use this exit.
• Two exits out to Lo Wu area, guarded by a police officer. To use this exit one must possess a Lo Wu Resident Card or a Closed Area Permit, which must be obtained at the Sheung Shui Police Station in Fanling.
  • A1: Tak Yuet Lau, Liu Pok Village
  • A2: Lo Wu Village, Sandy Ridge Cemetery

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lo Wu Station.

Station before renovation in 2008  Border crossing (Shenzhen side)  Lo Wu Resident Exit  Station viewed from Shenzhen side  Platforms 2 and 3, January 2008

See also

• Lo Wu
• Lo Wu Bridge
• Lo Wu Control Point
• Luohu (Shenzhen side)
• Luohu Station (Shenzhen side)

References