Merry Dragon Limited (喜龍有限公司) is a green minibus operator mainly serving Sai Kung district, providing green minibus services running between Sai Kung Town Centre, Po Lam and Kowloon East, with a particular focus on Hang Hau and The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST).
Currently, Merry Dragon operates seven green minibus routes under the Passenger Service Licence number 5057C, one of which is an overnight route[1]. The office was located at Room B, 1/F, Block 4 Hang Hau Village, Tseung Kwan O; its hotline numbers are 27196668 and 27196669, and the fax number is 23350947.
History[]
Merry Dragon Company Limited was founded on 30 April 1985 and took up the tender for the new GMB routes gazetted on 9 October 1987[2] Eventually, Routes 11 and 12 were tendered as a same group, all of which came into service on 30 June 1988.
Route 11 was the major route operated by Merry Dragon Limited running between Hang Hau and Ping Shek, initially providing shuttle service to Choi Hung MTR Station and originally intended to replace KMB Route 91M that was to be suspended at that time, and the scope of the services of both routes overlapped. However, with the eventual withdrawal of cancellation plans for the latter, it resulted in fierce competition between minibuses and buses for many years. As for Route 12, both termini are located in Sai Kung District though passing through Kwun Tong District, with Sai Kung and Po Lam as the termini, and a special working trip 12A was introduced to serve HKUST from 1992 to 1996. After 1996, 11 was re-routed via Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and HKUST has since become the company's main source of passengers.
In 2000, the overnight route 11S between Hang Hau Village and Ping Shek was launched, which passed through the HKUST, providing convenience to students from the university, while the opening of the MTR Tseung Kwan O Line on 18 August in 2002 brought about a major change in Tseung Kwan O's external transport network. Route 11 took the opportunity to split into two short-working routes, 11A[3] and 11M, the latter of which absorbed customers from 298 (cancelled after the opening of the MTR), which had been the preferred choice of many Hong Kong Island and Kowloon East HKUST students to get to the university, defeating the Route 298M that had replaced the latter, and further reinforcing the company's position as a minibus service in HKUST.
On 6 May 2004, Route 12 spun off a short-working trip, Route 12A (second generation), which ran circular between Po Lam and Shun Lee Disciplined Services Quarters. [4]
In 19 July 2010, Route 11 again spun off a short-working trip, Route 11B, carrying students of The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology to and from the campus during peak hours, initially on a trial basis and was eventually made permanent on 19 April 2011.
On 30 August 2019, the Estimated Time of Arrival service was introduced to routes 11, 11M, 11S and 12. The service makes use of the GPS devices installed on the vehicles of the four routes to provide the estimated arrival time and real-time location of the vehicles through the mobile application "USTransit", which is a programme developed by the former students of the HKUST, and is currently the only green minibus operator in the only green minibus operator that provides estimated time of arrival enquiry service and real-time location of the vehicles.
Routes[]
| Routes operated by Merry Dragon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Route no. | Termini | Remark | |
| 11 | Choi Hung Station ↔ Hang Hau Village ● | Daytime route | |
| 11A | Hang Hau Station ↔ Hang Hau Village ● | Daytime route, service-less route | |
| 11B | Choi Hung Station ↔ HKUST ● | Service only during Mondays to Fridays AM and PM peak hours | |
| 11M | Hang Hau Station ↔ HKUST ● | Daytime route | |
| 11S | Daily overnight service, via HKUST | ||
| 12 | Sai Kung ↔ Po Lam ● | Daytime route, via Kwun Tong District | |
| 12A | Po Lam ↔ Shun Lee Disciplined Services Quarters ● | Service on school days only | |
| Routes once operated under the name of Merry Dragon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Route no | Termini | Operating dates | |
| 12A | Sai Kung ↔ The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology | 19 March 1992 - 1995 | |
Minibus fleets[]
In recent years, the demand for HKUST's transport services has continued to rise, and the fleet of Merry Dragon Limited has expanded rapidly, and currently has a total of 44 minibuses serving its GMB routes.
Until 2009, the company had one Mitsubishi Rosa (KT1470) in service, and since its retirement, it has been presented as an all-Toyota Coaster fleet. In 2017, Merry Dragon has introduced several Golden Dragon XML6701J18 minibuses ("UY5785" was the first), which was one of the first Chinese-made minibuses in Hong Kong, and Hong Kong's first new-generation Toyota Coaster (ER1525), which made its first voyage on 5 September, as part of its new fleet. In the following six months, a number of Toyota Coaster Turbo models in the Dragon fleet were retired and replaced by the two new models mentioned above. Merry Dragon and then introduced a total of two new models in December 2018[5] and July 2021, when it introduced a total of 2 GMI Gemini minibuses.
Although LPG light buses have become a major trend in the 2000s, it was not until 2010 that the first LPG light bus, PD4363, was introduced to the fleet as a change from its previous practice of introducing diesel-powered minibuses only.
Currently New Territories Routes 11/12 series under Merry Dragon have a total of 43 minibuses, included 9 16-seater minibuses and 34 19-seater minibuses. The vehicle models are distributed as follows:
- 36 Toyota Coaster (3 2008 6LS, 1 2009 6LS, 1 2010 6LS, 1 2012 6DS, 1 2013 6LS, 1 2014 6DS, 1 2015 6LS, 6 2017 7LL, 1 2018 7DL, 9 2018 7LL, 9 2019 7LL, 1 2021 7LL, 1 2022 7LL)
- 6 Golden Dragon XML6701J18 (5 2017, 1 2018)
- 1 GMI Gemini (2018 3rd generation)
| List of New Territories Route 11/12 series minibuses | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plate No. | Model | Type No.[Remark 1] | Seat | Route Sign Configuration | Remarks |
| AZ3278 | Toyota Coaster | 2019 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in June 2019 Plate originally belonged to a Mitsubishi Rosa (2nd generation) and a Toyota Coaster (5DL) |
| BB2613 | Entered service in Late December 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 5LS2 | ||||
| BK6993 | 2017 7LL | Entered service in December 2017 Plate originally belonged to a 4th generation | |||
| BK6998 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | Entered service in November 2017 Plate originally belonged to a Toyota Coaster (4th generation) | |
| DC1005 | GMI Gemini | 2018 3rd generation | 19-seater NewHarmony (NHR) seats | Tung Tat EDS | Entered service in December 2018 Plate originally belonged to a Toyota Coaster (5DL)[Remark 2][Remark 3] |
| DC6278 | Toyota Coaster | 2018 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in March 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 4th generation |
| EE2263 | Entered service in March 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 4th generation[Remark 4] | ||||
| ER1525 | 2017 7LL | The first 7th generation Toyota Coaster LPG-minibus in Hong Kong Entered service in 5 September 2017 Plate originally belonged to a 4th generation | |||
| ER8715 | 2019 7LL | Entered service in October 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 5DL | |||
| ET1662 | 2009 6LS | 16-seater high adopt seat | Rollsign | Need to serve on Route 11S Original plate no. EG2205[Remark 5] Former vehicle on King On Transportation's New Territories Route 312 Current plate number was originally belonged to a 4th generation Joined in January 2018 | |
| ET4089 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | Entered service in Late September 2017 Plate originally belonged to a Toyota Coaster (4th generation) | |
| FH4104 | Toyota Coaster | 2008 6LS | 16-seater high adopt seat | Rollsign | Need to serve on Route 11S Original plate no. EB2975 Former vehicle on Kwok Chung Motor Car's New Territories Route 803K Current plate number was originally belonged to a 1993 2nd generation and a 2005 5DL[Remark 6] Joined in Late May 2019 |
| FU5444 | 2019 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in July 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 5DL | |
| FW5845 | 2018 7DL | 19-seater original 3-point harness seat | Equipped with an automatic transmission Entered service in October 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2005 5DL | ||
| FY2488 | 2018 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Entered service in Middle June 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 4th generation | ||
| JK7591 | Entered service in January 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 1999 4th generation | ||||
| JM4351 | 2017 7LL | Entered service in December 2017 Plate originally belonged to a 2000 4th generation | |||
| JN2952 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | Entered service in April 2018 Plate originally belonged to a Toyota Coaster 2000 4th generation on PLB Route 71 | |
| KB2152 | Toyota Coaster | 2018 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in Early March 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2001 4th generation |
| KC7237 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | Entered service in Late September 2017 Plate originally belonged to a Toyota Coaster (2001 4th generation) | |
| KE8722 | Toyota Coaster | 2017 7LL | 19-seater Vegaset | Patent Enterprises EDS | The second 7th generation Toyota Coaster LPG-minibus in Hong Kong Entered service in 6 September 2017 Plate originally belonged to a 2001 4th generation |
| KW7289 | 2022 7LL | 19-seater original 3-point harness seat | Entered service in July 2022 Plate originally belonged to a 2003 5LS[Remark 7] | ||
| LD6148 | 2018 7LL | 19-seater Vegaset | Entered service in August 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2003 5DL | ||
| LD9465 | Entered service in Late July 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2003 5DL | ||||
| LG4192 | Entered service in September 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2004 5DL[Remark 8] | ||||
| LJ2543 | 2019 7LL | Entered service in November 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 2004 5DL | |||
| LP9132 | 2018 7LL | Entered service in August 2018 Plate originally belonged to a 2004 5DL | |||
| LY6943 | 2019 7LL | Entered service in May 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 2005 5DL | |||
| LZ9195 | 2008 6LS | 16-seater high adopt seat | Rollsign | Original plate no. NL4634 Former vehicle on PLB Cheung Tsuen Route and Tsz Tsuen Route Current plate number was originally belonged to a 2005 5DL Joined in Late March 2019 | |
| ME1547 | 2019 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in April 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 2005 5DL | |
| PD4363 | 2010 6LS | 16-seater high adopt seat | Rollsign | The first LPG-minibuses on this route | |
| RS9787 | 2008 6LS | Original plate no. DC329[Remark 9] Former vehicle on PLB Yau Tsing Route Was also a former vehicle on PLB Kwun Mei Route Joined in Late August 2015 | |||
| RU2866 | 2012 6DS | Former vehicle on Central Venture's Kowloon Route 12S Joined in November 2020 | |||
| SA9948 | 2013 6LS | ||||
| SV3077 | 2019 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Transfull EDS | Entered service in 4 December 2019 Plate originally belonged to a 5DL[Remark 10] | |
| SW9531 | 2014 6DS | 16-seater high adopt seat | Rollsign | Former vehicle on PLB Tsz Mong Route and Wong Mong Route Joined in November 2021 | |
| TH3727 | 2021 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Transfull EDS | Need to serve on Route 12A Entered service in June 2021 Plate originally belonged to a 2008 6DS[Remark 11] | |
| UY5785 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | The first China-made GMB in Hong Kong, was a Demonstrator Entered service in 19 August 2017 | |
| VC8017 | Toyota Coaster | 2017 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Patent Enterprises EDS | Entered service in November 2017 |
| VE1512 | Entered service in December 2017 Covered with Aurora advertisement, serve on New Territories Route 11M Aurora special departure is required. | ||||
| VE7342 | Golden Dragon XML6701J18 | 19-seater Fainsa seat | Lucky Yu EDS | Entered service in December 2017 | |
| VN1323 | Toyota Coaster | 2015 6LS | 16-seater original 3-point harness seat | Rollsign | Original plate no. TN510[Remark 12] Former vehicle on PLB Po Mong Route Joined in June 2018 then changed the plate no. |
| WG1730 | 2019 7LL | 19-seater Vegaseat | Transfull EDS | Entered service in July 2019 | |
| List of former minibuses on New Territories Route 11/12 series | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plate No. | Model | Type No. | Seat No. | Retirement/withdrawal date | Fate | Substituted vehicle(s) |
| AZ3278 | Mitsubishi Rosa | 2nd generation | 16 | Unknown | Retired | Toyota Coaster 5DL of the same plate |
| Toyota Coaster | 5DL | June 2019 | 2019 7LL of the same plate | |||
| BB2613 | 5LS2 | December 2019 | ||||
| BK6993 | 4th generation | December 2017 | 2017 7LL of the same plate | |||
| BK6998 | November 2017 | 2017 Golden Dragon XML6701J18 of the same plate | ||||
| DC1005 | 5DL | December 2018 | GMI Gemini 2018 3rd generation of the same plate | |||
| DC6278 | 4th generation | March 2018 | 2018 7LL of the same plate | |||
| EE2263 | ||||||
| ER1525 | September 2017 | 2017 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| ER8715 | 5DL | October 2019 | 2019 7LL of the same plate | |||
| ET1662 | 4th generation | January 2018 | EG2205 (2009 6LS) Then applied the original plate in February 2018 | |||
| ET4089 | September 2017 | 2017 Golden Dragon XML6701J18 of the same plate | ||||
| FH4104 | 1993 2nd generation | June 2005 | DV732 (2005 5DL) Then applied the original plate no. | |||
| 2005 5DL | May 2019 | EB2975 (2008 6LS) Then applied the original plate no. in June 2019 | ||||
| FP579 | 4th generation | July 2014 | Retired earlier due to bornt into fire | LT7837 (2004 5LS2) | ||
| FU5444 | 5DL | July 2019 | Retired | 2019 7LL of the same plate | ||
| FW5845 | 2005 5DL | October 2018 | 2018 7DL of the same plate | |||
| FY2488 | 4th generation | June 2018 | 2018 7LL of the same plate | |||
| JE1303 | Mitsubishi Rosa | 1999 BE639E | October 2005 | Retired Plate is now applied to a 2005 5LS2 on Win Access Investment's Kowloon Route 72 |
KE3664 (Toyota Coaster - 2001 4th generation) | |
| JK7591 | Toyota Coaster | 1999 4th generation | January 2018 | Retired | 2018 7LL of the same plate | |
| JM4351 | 2000 4th generation | December 2017 | 2017 7LL of the same plate | |||
| JW8176 | January 2018 | VD1455 (2004 5LS) | ||||
| KB2152 | 2001 4th generation | March 2018 | 2018 7LL of the same plate | |||
| KC7237 | September 2017 | 2017 Golden Dragon XML6701J18 of the same plate | ||||
| KE3664 | August 2017 | UY5785 (2017 Golden Dragon XML6701J18) | ||||
| KE6579 | December 2017 | VE1512 (2017 7LL) | ||||
| KE8722 | September 2017 | 2017 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| KT1470 | Mitsubishi Rosa | 2002 BE639E | August 2009 | LH8603 (Toyota Coaster - 2004 5DL) | ||
| KW7289 | Toyota Coaster | 2003 5LS | July 2022 | 2022 7LL of the same plate | ||
| LB9448 | 2003 5DL | January 2018 | Transferred to PLB Route 71 | |||
| LD2690 | July 2019 | Retired | WG1730 (2019 7LL) | |||
| LD6148 | August 2018 | 2018 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| LD9465 | July 2018 | |||||
| LE6621 | September 2019 | 2019 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| 2019 7LL | 19 | October 2020 | Retired earlier due to burnt into fire | RU2866 (2012 6DS) | ||
| LG4192 | 2004 5DL | 16 | September 2018 | Retired | 2018 7LL of the same plate | |
| LH8603 | June 2018 | VN1323 (2015 6LS) | ||||
| LJ2543 | November 2019 | 2019 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| LP9132 | August 2018 | 2018 7LL of the same plate | ||||
| LT7837 | 2004 5LS2 | July 2021 | GMI Gemini 2021 4th generation of the same plate | |||
| GMI Gemini | 2021 4th generation | 19 | November 2021 | Transferred to Multi Logistics's Kowloon Route 86 then changed the plate no. as AG992[Remark 13] | SW9531 (2014 6DS) | |
| LU8493 | Toyota Coaster | 2005 5LS2 | 16 | December 2017 | Transferred to PLB Fuk Mong Route | VE7342 (2017 - Golden Dragon XML6701J18) |
| LY6943 | 2005 5DL | May 2019 | Retired | 2019 7LL of the same plate | ||
| LY8846 | 2005 5LS2 | April 2018 | Transferred to Holy Gain Investment's Kowloon Routes 70/70A | JN2952 (2018 - Golden Dragon XML6701J18) | ||
| LZ9195 | 2005 5DL | March 2019 | Retired | NL4634 (2008 6LS) Then applied the original plate number in June 2019 | ||
| MD5916 | 2005 5LS2 | July 2022 | Transferred to Holy Gain Investment's Kowloon Routes 70/70A | |||
| ME1547 | 2005 5DL | April 2019 | Retired | 2019 7LL of the same plate | ||
| SF1731[Remark 14] | 4th generation | November 2017 | VC8017 (2017 7LL) | |||
| SV3077 | 5DL | December 2019 | 2019 7LL of the same plate | |||
| TH3727[Remark 15] | 2008 6DS | June 2021 | 2021 7LL of the same plate | |||
| VD1455[Remark 16] | 2004 5LS | 2023 | ||||
The information may not be complete and accurate, to be updated and modified by those who are willing to do so.
This section was last updated on 12/2024202412
Gallery[]
Remarks[]
- ↑ Numbers placed after the model Toyota Coaster (if any) are only used within the transport enthusiasts, others (including the industry) does not use such names.
- ↑ "Minibus Collections" Facebook Posts
- ↑ The 5DL was originally a vehicle on Tsuen Wan Route No.86's New Territories Route 83A, and was changed to serve on PLB Ping Tsuen Route, Kwun Tsuen Route and Kung Mong Route, after that sold to Merry Dragon in early 2011, until late 2018 before retirement.
- ↑ The 4th generation was originally a vehicle on Ho King Maxicab, and was changed to serve on PLB Tsz Mong Route in February 2016 then sold to Merry Dragon, until March 2018 before retirement.
- ↑ The plate no. was originally belonged to a 1989 2nd generation on PLB Ping Tsuen Route
- ↑ The original plate number of the 5DL was DV732
- ↑ The 5LS was originally a vehicle on PLB Lam Mong Route, sold to Merry Dragon in February 2015, until July 2022 before retirement.
- ↑ The 5DL was originally serve on Sai Kung P.L.B.'s New Territories Routes 1 series/7/9, and was changed to serve on PLB Kung Mong Route and To Tsuen Route, sold to Merry Dragon in May 2016, until September 2018 before retirement.
- ↑ The plate number was originally belonged to a 3rd generation on PLB Shau To Route, used once to a 1998 4th generation (The original plate no. of the 4th generation was HX6094) on Chiu Luen' PLB To Mong Route, plate no. is now applied to a Taxi.
- ↑ The 5DL was the last retired 5DL minibus on this series and the whole Sai Kung District.
- ↑ The original plate no. of the 6DS was MY1138, was originally a vehicle on Sai Kung P.L.B.'s New Territories Routes 1 series/7/9, and was changed to serve on PLB Ping Tsuen Route and Kung Mong Route, sold to Merry Dragon in Early 2015 then changed the plate no., until June 2021 before retirement.
- ↑ The plate number is now apied to a 2018 7LL on PLB Mong Kok - Belvedere Garden Route
- ↑ The plate no. was originally used to a Toyota Coaster 5LS2 and a GMI Gemini 2017 3rd generation on Multi Logistics' Kowloon Route 86
- ↑ Original plate no. BB6696, plate no. changed in Middle 2013; the original plate no. is now applied to a Taxi.
- ↑ Original plate number MY1138, plate no. changed in early 2015.
- ↑ Original plate no. BC3378, plate no. changed in January 2018.
Related articles[]
References[]
- ↑ HKitalk: Hong Kong GMB Route Operator
- ↑ G.N. 3368, Hong Kong Government Gazette, Vol. 29, No. 41, 9 October 1987.
- ↑ Route 11A, which had been service-less due to its complete overlap with the routing of Route 11, was replaced by the two-way section fare of Route 11.
- ↑ The short-working trip was introduced as early as 2 January in 2001, but was not numbered until 2004.
- ↑ Related post by "Minibus Collections" Facebook page