The New Territories Green Minibus (GMB) Route 901 is operated by Coronet Ray Development Limited (冠亮發展有限公司) under Kwoon Chung Motors Group (Passenger Service Licence (PSL) No. 19810C). It runs between HZMB Hong Kong Port and Ying Tung Estate, via CAD Headquarters and Cathay City.
This route is the first GMB route on Lantau Island and the entire Islands District, and was once a rare example of a GMB route in Hong Kong[Remark 1] providing 24-hour non-stop service upon commencement. Coronet Ray also introduced 17-seater minibuses specifically on this route, making it the first for the Hong Kong GMB industry. This route will only pick up and drop off passengers at designated stops and will not stop anywhere else; as well, all vehicles are equipped with a stop announcement system, and all drivers are required to wear uniforms, making the route's operations similar to a franchised bus.
This is also the GMB route in Hong Kong with the highest route number.
History[]
The Transport Department (TD) released the Local Public Transport Arrangements at the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge in 2016, proposing to provide an additional green minibus (GMB) route to and from Tung Chung Station and two franchised bus routes to connect to the HZMB Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities (or HZMB Hong Kong Port) on the opening day of the HZMB, one to and from the Airport and AsiaWorld-Expo, and the other to and from Sunny Bay Station.[1]
Some local residents were of the view that the originally proposed GMB service to and from Tung Chung Station did not have sufficient space for luggage and could not fully cope with the volume of rail interchange[2]. After considering the views of various parties, the TD decided to replace the service with a franchised bus and provide an additional GMB Route 901 that will run between the Port and Tung Chung (Ying Tung Estate) via AsiaWorld-Expo, Airport Catering Area and Cathay City to complement each other and provide the public with more choices.[3]
Route Change History[]
- 28 July 2017: The Transport Department invited open tender for the right to operate three groups of four new GMB routes, of which this route is among one of them.[4][5]
- 24 October 2018: In conjunction with the commissioning of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, Route 901 came into service, being the only GMB route in Hong Kong with 17 seats[6]. At that time, it ran via Catering Road East, Cathay City, Tung Chung North, Catering Road East, Cathay City and AsiaWorld-Expo in order.
- 8 February 2020: This route was suspended from 8 February 2020 until 28 January 2023 due to the introduction of further epidemic control measures to compress cross-boundary passenger flow in response to the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak.[7]
- 29 January 2023: The service hours were shortened to morning and evening daily and the return journey was re-routed via CAD Headquarters instead of Catering Road East, AsiaWorld-Expo and Sky City Road East, and the sectional fares were all cancelled.[8]
Service Hours and Headways[]
The latest update is on 1/2023, please refer to the link below for the official route information.
| from HZMB Hong Kong Port | |
|---|---|
| Service Hours | Headways (mins) |
| Daily | |
| 06:30 - 19:30 | 30 |
- This route provides Real-time Arrival Information on the Transport Department“HKeMobility” mobile app.
Fares[]
| Journey/Boarding Stop | Fares |
|---|---|
| Full Fare | $8.4 |
| Fare Remarks |
|---|
|
Octopus Interchange Concession Schemes[]
| Route 901 and MTR Interchange Concessions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st leg | 2nd leg | Discounted amount | Time limit |
| 901 | MTR | 50￠ | 90 minutes |
| MTR | 901 | ||
Notes:
| |||
Historical Fares[]
| Historical Fares | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Minibus Deployments[]
According to the Transport Department's Schedule of Services, seven (7) 17-seater minibuses are required to provide service on this route. The total capacity of each direction during the busiest hour is not less than 119 passengers.
According to the tender conditions, the operator is required to install a luggage rack behind the driver's seat, which occupies the space of two passenger seats, with an internal length, width and height of at least 750mm, 500mm and 650mm respectively[5]. The seven 17-seater Toyota Coaster LPG minibuses are different from the 19-seater configuration of other minibuses available in the market (and even other Toyota Coasters), which do not need a luggage rack.
The first 17-seater Toyota Coaster minibus arrived at the Kowloon Bay Vehicle Examination Centre on 6 April 2018 for inspection[9] and was fitted with a stop request bell above the seats. The vehicle has been equipped with a luggage rack as required by the Transport Department's tender, and the seating capacity has been reduced to 17 accordingly. The operator assigned a fleet number with the prefix "MB" to its minibuses and displayed it on a paper plate in the left window of the minibus.
After the suspension of this route, all seven vehicles were left idle at the HZMB Hong Kong Port. Coronet Ray temporarily converted some of the vehicles to red minibuses in October 2021 for use elsewhere, but the luggage racks and stop announcement system were kept.[10] All vehicles were converted back to green minibuses in April 2022.
| List of minibuses of NT Route 901 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plate No. | Model Code[Remark 2] | Seat Nos. | Dest. sign Configuration | F/N | Remark(s) |
| KV4885 | 2018 7LL | 17-seater NewHarmony (NHR) seats |
Patent Enterprises EDS | MB01 | Plate originally belonged to a 2002 5LS from Jetland Kowloon Routes 75/75A |
| NR4255 | Hanover EDS with side display | MB07 | Plate originally belonged to a 2007 5DL from Chit Fai Motors 2/6 series routes[Remark 3] | ||
| PA7593 | Patent Enterprises EDS | MB02 | Plate originally belonged to a 5LS from North Island Trunk Route and Shau Shek Route Once switched to AN Bus PLB AN8／AN8X Route between Oct 2021 and Apr 2022 | ||
| VP6652 | MB05 | Once switched to AN Bus PLB AN8／AN8X Route between Oct 2021 and Apr 2022 | |||
| VP7457 | MB04 | ||||
| VP8057 | MB03 | ||||
| VP8078 | MB06 | ||||
The information may not be complete and accurate, and is subject to revision by those who wish to do so.
This section was last updated on 2/2023202302
Routing[]
The distance of this route is approx. 17.0km, and the journey time is approximately 38mins. (The average speed is 26.8km/h.)
Via: Shun Wui Road, Chek Lap Kok Road, East Coast Road, roundabout, East Coast Road, Tung Yiu Road, Tung Fai Road, East Coast Road, Scenic Road, Chun Wan Road Interchange, Scenic Road, Chek Lap Kok South Road, Tung Chung Waterfront Road, Wai Tung Road, Man Tung Road, Ying Tung Road (eastbound), u-turn, Ying Tung Road (westbound), Ying Hei Road, Tung Chung Waterfront Road, Chek Lap Kok South Road, Scenic Road, East Coast Road, Tung Yiu Road, Roundabout, Tung Yiu Road, East Coast Road, Sky City Interchange, Chek Lap Kok Road, Shun Fai Road and Shun Wui Road
| New Territories GMB Route 901 (HZMB Hong Kong Port ↺ Ying Tung Estate) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Area | Road | Major stop locations | Remarks |
| 1 | HZMB Hong Kong Port Artificial Island | |||
| 2 | Airport (East Commercial District) | Tung Fai Road | ||
| 3 | Airport (Logistics Area) | Scenic Road | ||
| 4 |
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| Chek Lap Kok South Road | ||||
| 5 | Tung Chung North |
|
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| 6 | Wai Tung Road |
|
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| 7 | Man Tung Road |
|
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| 8 |
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| 9 |
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| 10 |
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| 11 | Ying Tung Road |
|
Northbound stop | |
| 12 |
|
Circular route return point | ||
| 13 |
|
Southbound stop | ||
| 14 | Ying Hei Road |
|
||
| Passengers boarding at or before Cathay City who wish to continue to travel to Aviation Fuel Tank Farm or stops thereafter should repay the fare at Ying Hei Road. | ||||
| Chek Lap Kok South Road | ||||
| 15 | Airport (Logistics Area) | Scenic Road |
|
|
| 16 | East Coast Road | |||
| 17 | Airport (East Commercial District) | Tung Yiu Road | ||
| 18 | HZMB Hong Kong Port Artificial Island | Shun Fai Road |
|
Alighting Only |
| 19 | ||||
| Note: Drivers will only stop at the above designated minibus stops to pick up or set down passengers, and will not stop anywhere else. | ||||
Ridership[]
The travel demand between the Airport Logistics Area and HZMB Hong Kong Port is low, while Tung Chung North is still under development and has a much smaller population than the Tung Chung Town Centre area, which also has limited demand. This, coupled with the fact that residents travelling between Cathay City and the Catering Area during peak hours can take the Route S64P, which is more than half the full fare of this route, has led to a continuous low ridership and occasional empty minibuses, prompting District Councillors to request that the route be bypassed via the Airport Terminal Building[11]. However, in August 2020, the Transport Department only proposed that the route to be re-routed via the CAD Headquarters, instead of Cathay City and the AsiaWorld-Expo, and that the service hours were to be shortened to morning and evening every day, but did not respond to the request for a route via the Terminal Building[12]. The proposal eventually took effect on 29 January 2023.
Gallery[]
Remarks[]
- ↑ According to Transport Department's Schedule of Services, some Hong Kong Island GMB Routes operated by AMS Transport provides overnight services, but they all have individual route numbers listed on stop signs and route signs and the fares are higher during late night hours.
- ↑ Refers to a set of numbers after the model name Toyota Coaster (if any). They were only used within transport enthusiasts, others (including the industry) does not have such code namings.
- ↑ Original plate no. of the 5DL minibus is LH5054, plate no. changed in 2008
Related Articles[]
- NLB Route B4
- NLB Route B6
- LWB Route S64P
References[]
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "港珠澳大橋香港口岸的本地公共交通服務安排（首輪建議）" (Local Public Transport Arrangements at the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (First-Round Suggestions)) , March 2016.
- ↑ 大嶼山的交通及運輸事宜 (Traffic and Transport on Lantau Island), Third Meeting of the Lantau Development Advisory Committee Transport and District Improvement Project Team, 30 November 2017.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "港珠澳大橋香港口岸本地公共交通服務最新安排" (Local Public Transport Arrangements at the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities of Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge) , May 2017.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "Applications invited for operating green minibus routes" [News Bulletin], 28 July 2017.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 G. N. 5435: Road Traffic (Public Service Vehicles) Regulations (Cap 374D)--Packages of Public Light Bus (Scheduled) Routes in the New Territories, HKSAR Government Gazette Vol. 21 Issue No. 30, 3 December 2024.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "Introduction of N.T. GMB Route No. 901" [Traffic Advice], 23 October 2018.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "Land-based cross-boundary special transport arrangements" [News Bulletin], 6 February 2020.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, "Service Resumption and Adjustments of N.T. GMB Route 901" [Traffic Advice], 20 January 2023.
- ↑ 港珠澳大橋專線小巴曝光 改裝17座備行李架 (HZMB Route green minibus revealed with 17 seats and a luggage rack), Oriental Daily News, 8 April 2018.
- ↑ "KV4885 @ 901", "Minibus Collections" Facebook page.
- ↑ 有關建議綠色專線小巴901號線伸延服務至機場客運大樓的提問 (Questions on the proposed extension of green minibus route 901 to the Airport Terminal), Islands District Council Traffic and Transport Committee Paper No. T&TC 11/2019, 4 January 2019.
- ↑ Transport Department HKSARG, 有關建議重組專線小巴901號線的提問 (Questions on the proposed reorganisation of GMB route 901), Islands District Council Traffic and Transport Committee Paper No. T&TC 29/2020, August 2020.
External Links[]
- Coronet Ray Development Official Route Information: 901
- Official information on Transport Department (HKeMobility website): New Territories Green Minibus Route No. 901
| List of routes connecting Boundary Control Points | |
|---|---|
| Lok Ma Chau Control Point (connecting to Huanggang Port) | <Cross-boundary Shuttle Buses> Huang Bus <Cross-boundary Coaches> Kam Sheung Road All China Express • China-Hong Kong Express (Tsuen Wan) • Yau Tsim 24-hour Cross-border Express • Mong Kok All China Express • Kwun Tong 24-hour Cross-border Express • Wan Chai All China Express • Wonderland Express • Huanggang Cross-boundary Bus Tung Chung Citygate Route <Late-night GMB> 44B • 79S • 616S |
| Shenzhen Bay Control Point (connects to Shenzhen Bay Port of Entry) | <Local Services> Franchised Buses: B2 • B2P • B2X • B3 • B3A • B3M • B3X Green Minibuses: 618 <Cross-boundary Coaches> Trans-Island Prince Edward-Shenzhen Bay Route • Trans-Island Tsim Sha Tsui-Shenzhen Bay Route • Shenzhen Bay Cross-border Express • East Kowloon Express • Trans-Island Sheung Wan-Shenzhen Bay Route • Trans-Island Causeway Bay-Shenzhen Bay Route • Shenzhen Bay-Ocean Park Route • Shenzhen Bay Cross-boundary Bus Shenzhen Bay Route |
| Lok Ma Chau Spur Line Control Point (connects to Futian Port of Entry) | |
| Sha Tau Kok Control Point (connects to Shatoujiao Port of Entry) | |
| Man Kam To Control Point (connects to Shenzhen Wenjindu Port of Entry) | <Cross-boundary Coaches> Man Kam To Express |
| Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) Control Point (connects to HZMB Macau Frontier Post and Zhuhai Port) | <Local Services> Franchised Buses:A10 • A11 • A12 • A17 • A21 • A22 • A23 • A25 • A26 • A28 • A29 • A30 • A31 • A32 • A33X • A34 • A35 • A36 • A37 • A38 • A41 • A41P • A42 • A43 • A46 • A47X • B4 • B5 • B6 • N35 • NA11 • NA12 • NA20 • NA21 • NA29 • NA31 • NA32 • NA33 • NA36 • NA37 • NA40 • NA41 • NA43 • NA47 Green Minibuses: 901 <Cross-boundary shuttle buses/coaches> Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Shuttle Bus <Cross-border Coaches> One Bus • Hong Kong - Macao Express • Kwun Tong (apm)-Macau Route • EEBus HZMB-Macau Route |
| Heung Yuen Wai Boundary Control Point (connects to Shenzhen Liantang Port) | |
| HKIA SkyPier Terminal (connects to HZMB Macau Frontier Post and Zhuhai Port) | <Cross-boundary Coaches> Macau HK Airport Direct • Zhuhai HK Airport Direct (Direct access to the restricted area of the airport without immigration clearance in Hong Kong) |