Hong Kong Buses Wiki

The New Territories Bus Route 290E is operated by Kowloon Motor Bus (KMB). It runs between Tsuen Wan West Station and Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate, providing service only during peak hours on Mondays to Fridays.

Among all Tseung Kwan O - Tsuen Wan Bus Routes, this is the only one that does not pass through Po Lam Road; after serving Kwai Chung, Tai Wo Ping, Wong Tai Sin and Choi Hung as other routes in the same series, it goes directly to Laguna City without stopping at Kwun Tong Road before heading to Tseung Kwan O South, Pak Shing Kok and LOHAS Park via Tseung Lam Highway.

History[]

New route following the opening of Tseung Lam Highway[]

On 15 November 2022, the Government announced that the Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel and Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Link would be commissioned on 11 December of the same year. At the same time, the Transport Department (TD) published the "Franchised Bus Service Arrangements to tie in with the Commissioning of the Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel and the Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Link", proposing that five new bus routes be operated on the day following the commissioning of the new roads (12 December) for travelling to and from Tseung Kwan O via Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel. One of the new routes, 290E between Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate and Tsuen Wan West Station, would become the sixth Tseung Kwan O - Tsuen Wan Bus Route.

  • 12 December 2022: Route 290E entered service.[1][2]
  • 2 January 2024: A new stop was added at "Cha Kwo Ling Road" on Cha Kwo Ling Road for Tsuen Wan West Station direction. [3]

Merging with the old route with service scope expansion[]

Each of the six Tseung Kwan O - Tsuen Wan Bus Routes has its own meanderings and overlapped with each other, and KMB had gradually worked on the integration of different routes. Among them, this route overlapped with the old Route 290B in the sections between Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate and Pak Shing Kok, and between Choi Hung and Tsuen Wan; and there was no Tseung Kwan O - Tsuen Wan Bus Route going deeper into Kwai Fong. In the 2024-2025 Bus Route Planning Programme, there was a proposal to merge Routes 290B and 290E, which would be replaced by Route 290E detouring via LOHAS Park Station and Po Yap Road, and detouring via Hing Fong Road towards Tseung Kwan O. Some District Council members are worried that this would result in the lengthening of the journey time for passengers travelling to the Industrial Estate and LOHAS Park, and proposed to enhance the bus services in Tiu Keng Leng. TD responded that it hoped to make effective use of bus resources to provide a quicker service between Tseung Kwan O town centre and Tsuen Wan, thereby saving about 10 to 15 minutes of travelling time, and that residents of Tiu Keng Leng could also walk to the "Park Central" bus stop and take this route, and thus the proposal was implemented.

  • 30 September 2024: Headways were drastically enhanced and routing was amended to tie in with the cancellation of Route 290B:[4]
    • Detoured via LOHAS Park Station Public Transport Interchange, Oscar By The Sea and Po Yap Road for both directions and no longer passed through Tseung Kwan O Cross Bay Link;
    • Detoured via Hing Fong Road for Tseung Kwan O direction with additional stops at "Kwai Chung Plaza" on Kwai Foo Road and "Metroplaza", replacing the "Lai King Estate Kwai Chung Road" stop on Kwai Chung Road;
    • Morning service to Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate and evening service to Tsuen Wan was introduced and departure times of evening trips from Tsuen Wan West Station were adjusted.
  • 16 December 2024: Trips from Tseung Kwan O were increased to four, departing at 07:15, 07:35, 17:05 and 17:20; all morning trips from Tsuen Wan West Station were delayed by 10 minutes.[5]

Historical route information[]

Details of the past service hours and headways, fares and other route information of this route are set out in the "Historical route information" sub-page of this article.

Service hours and headways[]

The latest update is on 12/2024, please refer to the link below for the official route information.

From Tsuen Wan West Station From Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate
Mondays to Fridays
06:55 07:15, 07:35
17:30, 17:50 17:05, 17:20
No service on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays
This route provides Estimated Time of Arrival enquiry Service.

Fares[]

Journey/Boarding stop Air-conditioned fare
Full fare $12.1
Section fares (to Tseung Kwan O)
From Beacon Heights $10.1
Wai Lok Street Kwun Tong $8.2
From Park Central $5.8
Section fares (to Tsuen Wan)
From Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel BBI $11.0
From Ngau Chi Wan BBI - Hung Ngok House $10.1
From Lai King Estate Kwai Chung Road $6.5
Fare Remarks
  • Half-fare for children aged below 12 and senior citizens aged 65 or above; the remainder of the fare after half-fare will be counted as 10 cents.
  • Elderly persons aged 65 or above using Senior Octopus Cards or Personalised Octopus cards, Hong Kong residents aged 60 to 64 using JoyYou Card, and eligible persons with disabilities using Personalised Octopus cards with "Persons with Disabilities Status" can enjoy a flat fare of $2.0 per journey under the $2 Concessionary Fare. If the concessionary fare for eligible persons with disabilities aged below 12 and senior citizens aged 65 or above is less than $2.0 after a 50% discount from the regular fare, the beneficiary is only required to pay the original concessionary fare; if the original full fare for Hong Kong residents aged 60 to 64 or eligible persons with disabilities is already less than $2.0, the beneficiary is also only required to pay the original full fare.
  • Passengers are required to tender exact fare by cash or by Octopus card when boarding. No exact change will be given.
  • Passengers can also pay their fares through a variety of electronic payment tools (e-payment system), including using contactless VISA, JCB Card, MasterCard, UnionPay, American Express, Discover Card, Diners Club International Credit Card, UnionPay Credit Card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay, AlipayHK "EasyGo" and UnionPay "QuickPass", BoC Pay "Ride Code" and WeChat Pay HK or WeChat "Ride Code". Passengers using this payment method are not eligible for the interchange concessions with non-KMB/LWB routes, nor are they eligible for the "Public Transport Fare Subsidy Scheme" and "Public Transport Fare Concession Scheme for the Elderly and Eligible Persons with Disabilities".

Bus-Bus Interchange Concessions[]

Passengers using the same Octopus card to interchange to the designated route after this route within a specific time, or transfer from the designated route to this route can enjoy an interchange concession. The details are as follows: (Half discount for children and senior citizens.) Template:KMB Route 290E Interchange Concession Scheme

Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel BBI Interchange Concessions[]

Template:Tseung Lam Tunnel Interchange Concessions

Po Tat BBI Interchange Concession Scheme[]

Template:Po Tat BBI Interchange Concession Scheme

LWB A Routes and KMB Interchange Concession Scheme[]

LWB Airport Routes, AsiaWorld-Expo Special Routes and KMB Interchange Concession Scheme
1st leg Direction 2nd leg Direction Discount for 2nd leg Time limit
X33, X36, X40, X43, X47 To Urban KMB solely-operated routes Unlimited Positive difference between the fare payable for the 2nd leg minus the fare paid for the 1st leg
Free if the difference is in negative number
150mins
A30, A31, A32, A33, A33X, A34, A36, A37, A38, A41, A41P, A42, A43, A43P *, A46, A47X 120mins
KMB Solely-operated routes Any A30, A31, A32, A33, A33X, A34, A36, A37, A38, A41, A41P, A42, A43, A43P *, A46, A47X to Airport

Note:

  • Passengers are required to use the same Octopus card/credit card or the same mobile payment tool account (KMB/LWB "e-payment system") to enjoy the interchange discount.
  • Passengers can enjoy the above interchange discount at any bus stop where they can connect to a second route.
  • KMB journeys are not applicable to tourist routes (i.e. R-tail routes), unconventional special routes, racecourse routes and MTR Feeder Bus routes.
  • Passengers heading towards the urban area will not be able to enjoy the "Inter-route Interchange Discount" on the KMB route immediately after interchange after enjoying this interchange discount.
  • Airport-bound passengers who enjoy the "KMB Inter-route Transfer Concession" between the first and second journeys may still enjoy the interchange discount on the third immediately following the LWB route A at $6.0 or the second KMB route minus the concession fare, whichever is lower; if the second KMB route is a free interchange (including free journeys with KMB Monthly Pass) or the first two journeys are both If the second KMB route is a free interchange (including free journeys with KMB Monthly Pass) or the first two journeys are both KMB routes with interchange concessions, the interchange concession will not be offered.
  • Routes R8, S64 series, Long Win Bus Lantau Link BBI, Tuen Mun Chek Lap Kok Tunnel bus routes and all interchange schemes with other companies cannot be used consecutively with this interchange concession.
  • 50% discount for children under 12 years old; for passengers benefiting from the Public Transport Fare Concession Scheme for the Elderly and Eligible Persons with Disabilities when interchanging from LWB A Routes to KMB, the KMB one-way fare is the lower of the discounted concessionary fare (or 50% discount in the case of elderly or eligible persons with disabilities under 12 years old) and $2.0, therefore some interchange combinations may not be available. When interchanging from KMB to LWB A Routes, passengers may get back the actual fare paid for the first journey (i.e. the lower of the original fare (50% discount for elderly or eligible persons with disabilities under 12 years old) and $2.0).

: For interchanging from KMB Route B1 (Tin Tsz direction) to LWB Route A43P ( Airport direction), the actual fare paid for the first journey will be refunded for the next journey, except that the interchange concession cannot be enjoyed for the first journey of Route B1, otherwise, only the normal (i.e. maximum $6.0) interchange concession will be offered; for interchange from LWB Route A43P (Luen Wo Hui direction) to KMB Route B1 (Lok Ma Chau direction), passengers will be offered a free interchange concession for the second journey, but no interchange discount will be offered for the first journey of route A43P and no other interchange concession will be offered for route B1 thereafter. This special concession is not applicable to other LWB A routes (including Routes A36, A37 and A43).

KMB and Sun Bus-Bus Interchange Concessions[]

Template:KMB and Sun Bus-Bus Interchange Concessions

Bus deployments[]

A total of 2 Volvo B8L 12m (V6B) double-decker buses were assigned to this route as scheduled buses, which will be dispatched away to Routes 296M and 690 outside of service hours; orders from Route 95 may also appear on this route.

List of buses on Route 290E
Fleet no. Plate no. Depot
V6B151 WU3004 Kowloon Bay Depot (K)
V6B180 XE699

The above list of scheduled buses are as of November 2023, forwarded from hk2007.buscess website (Chinese only). The above buses might not be listed according to running orders.
The related content is for reference only and will be updated according to fleet changes (check update list). To check scheduled bus changes, refer to detailed information on hk2007.buscess website.
3123

Routing[]

To Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate[]

To Tseung Kwan O: The distance of this route is approx. 34.5km, and the journey time is approximately 96mins. (The average speed is 21.6km/h.)

Via: Tai Ho Road, Castle Peak Road - Tsuen Wan, Castle Peak Road - Kwai Chung, Kwai Chung Road, Kwai Foo Road, Hing Fong Road, Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road, Ching Cheung Road, Lung Cheung Road, Kwun Tong Road, flyover, Kwun Tong Road, Kwun Tong Road Underpass, Kwun Tong Road, Lei Yue Mun Road, Wai Fat Road, Wai Yip Street, Cha Kwo Ling Road, Lam Tin Interchange, Tseung Lam Highway, Po Yap Road, Wan Po Road, Pak Shing Kok Road, roundabout, Pak Shing Kok Road, Wan Po Road, Lohas Park Road, LOHAS Park Station Public Transport Interchange, Lohas Park Road, Wan Po Road and Chun Yat Street

Kowloon Motor Bus Route 290E (Tsuen Wan West StationTseung Kwan O Industrial Estate)
No. Area Road Bus stop name Remarks
1 Tsuen Wan West Tsuen Wan West Station Bus Terminus
2 Tsuen Wan Town Centre Tai Ho Road Tai Ho Road Tsuen Wan
3 Castle Peak Road - Tsuen Wan Chung On Street Tsuen Wan
4 Tai Wo Hau Tai Wo Hau BBI - Tai Wo Hau Station (A1)
5 Castle Peak Road - Kwai Chung Cheung Wing Road Gyratory
6 Kwai Hing Kwai Chung Road Kwai Chun Court
7 Sun Kwai Hing Gardens
8 Kwai Fong Kwai Fong Estate
9 Kwai Foo Road Kwai Chung Plaza
10 Hing Fong Road Metroplaza
Tsuen Wan Road, Kwai Chung Road; Ching Cheung Road
11 Tai Wo Ping Lung Cheung Road Beacon Heights Section fare begins here
12 Phoenix House
13 Wong Tai Sin Wong Tai Sin BBI - Wong Tai Sin Temple
14 Ngau Chi Wan Ngau Chi Wan BBI - Ngau Chi Wan Village
Kwun Tong Road
15 Sai Tso Wan Wai Yip Street Wai Lok Street Kwun Tong Section fare begins here
Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel
16 Tseung Kwan O Town Centre Po Yap Road Park Central Section fare begins here
17 Tseung Kwan O Station
18 Tseung Kwan O Plaza
19 Tseung Kwan O (Pak Shing Kok) Wan Po Road Pung Loi Road
20 Pak Shing Kok Road Fire and Ambulance Services Academy
21 Wan Po Road Pak Shing Kok
22 Tseung Kwan O (Siu Chik Sha) LOHAS Park Station
23 Wan Po Road The Beaumont
24 La Splendeur LOHAS Park
25 Tseung Kwan O (Tai Chik Sha) Chun Yat Street Tai Chik Sha Fire Station
26 Chun Yat Street
27 Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate Bus Terminus

To Tsuen Wan West Station[]

To Tsuen Wan: The distance of this route is approx. 33.4km, and the journey time is approximately 100mins. (The average speed is 20km/h.)

Via: Chun Wang Street, Chun Choi Street, Chun Ying Street, Chun Kwong Street, Chun Cheong Street, Chun Yat Street, Wan Po Road, Lohas Park Road, LOHAS Park Station Public Transport Interchange, Lohas Park Road, Wan Po Road, Pak Shing Kok Road, roundabout, Pak Shing Kok Road, Wan Po Road, Po Yap Road, Tseung Lam Highway, Lam Tin Interchange, Cha Kwo Ling Road, Wai Yip Street, Wai Fat Road, Cha Kwo Ling Road, Lei Yue Mun Road, Kwun Tong Road, Kwun Tong Road Underpass, Kwun Tong Road, flyover, Kwun Tong Road, Lung Cheung Road, Ching Cheung Road, Kwai Chung Road, Castle Peak Road - Kwai Chung, Castle Peak Road - Tsuen Wan and Tai Ho Road

Kowloon Motor Bus Route 290E (Tseung Kwan O Industrial EstateTsuen Wan West Station)
No. Area Road Bus stop name Remarks
1 Tseung Kwan O (Tai Chik Sha) Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate Bus Terminus
2 Chun Wang Street Chun Wang Street
3 Chun Choi Street Chun Choi Street
4 Chun Ying Street Chun Ying Street
5 Chun Kwong Street Chun Kwong Street
6 Tseung Kwan O (Siu Chik Sha) Wan Po Road Le Prestige LOHAS Park
7 The Capitol LOHAS Park
8 LOHAS Park Station
9 Tseung Kwan O (Pak Shing Kok) Pak Shing Kok Road Fire and Ambulance Services Academy
10 Wan Po Road Pak Shing Kok
11 Oscar By The Sea
12 Tseung Kwan O Town Centre Po Yap Road Bauhinia Garden
13 Tseung Kwan O Station
14 Park Central
Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel
15 Cha Kwo Ling Lam Tin Interchange Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel BBI (A2) Section fare begins here
16 Cha Kwo Ling Road Cha Kwo Ling Road
17 Sai Tso Wan Wai Yip Street Wai Lok Street Kwun Tong
Kwun Tong Road
18 Choi Hung Lung Cheung Road Ngau Chi Wan BBI - Hung Ngok House
19 Wong Tai Sin Wong Tai Sin BBI - Wong Tai Sin Temple
20 Tai Wo Ping Phoenix House
21 Beacon Heights
Ching Cheung Road
22 Kwai Chung (Container Terminals) Kwai Chung Road Lai King Estate Kwai Chung Road Section fare begins here
23 Kwai Fong Kwai Fong Plaza
24 Kwai Hing Kwong Fai Circuit
25 Castle Peak Road - Kwai Chung Kin Chuen Street Kwai Chung
26 Tai Wo Hau Tai Wo Hau BBI - Tai Wo Hau Station (B2)
27 Tsuen Wan Town Centre Castle Peak Road - Tsuen Wan Chung On Street Tsuen Wan
28 Tai Ho Road Tai Ho Road Tsuen Wan
29 Tsuen Wan West Tsuen Wan West Station Bus Terminus

Ridership[]

According to District Council documents, the ridership of this route is as follows:

  • 2022: A field survey was conducted at Tseung Kwan O - Lam Tin Tunnel BBI and Wai Lok Street in the morning and evening hours in late December with the occupancy rate of the busiest hour with Route 298X and NWFB Routes 790 and 795 ranged from about 30-50%.[6]
  • 2023: A field survey conducted at Wan O Road indicated an average occupancy rate of 25% and 35% respectively for the two trips at afternoon.[7][8]
  • 2024: The average occupancy rate was 60%.

Gallery[]

Remarks[]

Related articles[]

References[]

  1. The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited, "Three Tseung Kwan O – Lam Tin Tunnel express routes Routes 96, 290E and 298X to put into service on 12 December A new page for traffic in Tseung Kwan O" [News Release], 15 November 2022.
  2. The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited, "Tseung Lam Highway Express Routes 96, 290E and 298X to commence tomorrow with multiple BBI connections A grand opening ceremony to witness a new way to travel from Tseung Kwan O" [News Release], 11 December 2022.
  3. The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited, "96, 290E, 298X Additional Bus Stop" [Passenger Notice], December 2023.
  4. The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited, "KMB enhances service coverage in Tseung Kwan O and Clear Water Bay area for passengers to travel to new Immigration Headquarters, Hong Kong Island and Kwun Tong effortlessly" [News Release], 26 September 2024.
  5. The Kowloon Motor Bus Company (1933) Limited, "290E Service Enhancement" [Passenger Notice], December 2024.
  6. 運輸署就 SKDC(TTC)文件第4/23號 「促請運輸署及巴士公司加強將藍隧道的巴士服務 (如開設過海巴士往港島東(北角、太古城、筲箕灣)和中西區的巴士或小巴線、提升現有路線 96、298X、290E、790、795 至全日服務),並優化轉車安排(例如:在藍田交匯處合適位置增設往將軍澳的轉乘站)」的書面回應 (Transport Department's written response to SKDC(TTC) Paper No. 4/23 "Urging the Transport Department and bus companies to enhance bus services at the Tseung Kwan O Tunnel (e.g. introducing cross-harbour bus or minibus routes to Hong Kong Island East (North Point, Taikoo Shing, Shau Kei Wan) and Central and Western districts, upgrading existing routes 96, 298X, 290E, 790, 795 to full-day services) and improving interchange arrangements (e.g. providing additional interchanges to Tseung Kwan O at suitable locations at Lam Tin Interchange), Sai Kung District Council Traffic and Transport Committee Paper No. 24/23, January 2023.
  7. "運輸署就 SKDC(TTC)文件第74/23號 「促請運輸署及服務營辦商改善將軍澳、西貢區內巴士及小巴服務」 書面回應" (Written reply from Transport Department on SKDC(TTC) Paper No. 74/23 "Demand to improve in-district bus and minibus services within Tseung Kwan O and Sai Kung"), Sai Kung District Council Traffic and Transport Committee Paper No. 99/23, July 2023
  8. Sai Kung District Council Secretariat, "西貢區議會 交通及運輸委員會 二零二三年第四次會議記錄(第67點)" (Sai Kung District Council Traffic and Transport Committee Minutes of the 4th Meeting held in 2023 (Point 67)), August 2023.

External links[]