2.5 MTR Network Analysis

Hong Kong metro 2022 map (baseline map, source: (MTR, 2022))

This is the current map of Hong Kong Metro Network, with BtCn calculations for the radius 12,000m (30-50min travel time, median motorized travel time in Hong Kong, ARUP, 2014 ). The results show that the flow potential of Island Line and Tsuen Line are the highest. The potential flow of west Kowloon Peninsula is overall the highest considering that it is serviced by three corridors, and the east Kowloon has also high level, yet it has only one MTR line. The potential flow of Tuen Mun, Lantau, Sha Tin, North New Territories is decreasing with distance toward the end of the line. The analysis does not factor in the “weight” of each station (Airport, new town). This can be added either in the analysis itself of by manual post processing.

Hong Kong metro 2031 MTR baseline map with Lantau, Northern link, North Island line, West South Island line, East Rail cross harbour line East Kowloon Line and tug Chung extension

Overall, the changes re-enforce the main CBD (Island Line, Island line north) around Central and Admiralty, in particular the relationship to Hung Hom, Quarry Bay and Yau Tong). All the MTR corridors in West Kowloon and Kowloon East are also re-enforced making the urban core around the Victoria Harbour even more attractive than before.

Hong Kong 2022, 2031 baseline, 2031+Northern New Town, 2031+Lantau2b

2031+Northern New Town: The Northern new town has a particular configuration around a loop creating a linear cluster between Fanling, Sheung Shui, Lo Wu South, Kwu Tung and Lok Ma Chau/Loop.

2031+Lantau2b: this option connecting directly West Kowloon to Kowloon East to Kennedy Town has a powerful impact. The option to connect to the Island in the Central Water might be a way to re-enforce the CBD3 potential

HK+SZ: 2022, 2031, 2031+Lantau2b, 2031+Northern

New Town

Disconnected: The results show how linear is Shenzhen’s MTR core with cluster in Futian LoWu and Nanshan-Qianhai. Shenzhen also shows a much larger core, at least double the size of HK’s north HKI and West Kowloon-East Kowloon. Connected: The difference in station inter-distance between HK and SZ results in concentration flow potential in HK (daily 5 million trip/year, 99 stations, 2019) and Shenzhen (daily 7.7 million trips, 290 stations, 2020). Thus the flow while surprising is representative of flow potential. The main findings is that even connected the core work independently. In the north metropolis the Futian –Lo Wu and Fanling, Sheung Shui, Lo Wu South, Kwu Tung and Lok Ma Chau/Loop form an integrated cluster.

Betweenness centrality definition

For every pair of origin and destination links (OD links) in the network within a reach radius, there exists at least one shortest path between the OD links such that the number of link that the path passes through is minimized. The betweenness centrality for each link is the number of these shortest paths that pass through the link.

The metric that is used for distance can be varied to capture the specifics of people route choice preference. For example, pedestrian follow a mix of most direct and shortest path and not shortest path. Although pedestrian, if asked, may say that they follow shortest path they usually don’t. Similarly drivers, with no navigation help, mostly do not follow shortest path or shortest time.

Betweenness centrality applies to a wide range of problems in network theory, including problems related to social networks, biology, transport, scientific cooperation, etc.

Limitations of the study

The value of betweenness centrality analysis (Euclidean metric) only shows the potential flow from the spatial characteristics of the metro networks, without consideration of other factors like actual development around stations, land use distribution, and other socio-economic dimensions affecting metro usage. Yet given the well-established association between development and metro spatial accessibility/flow potential, network analysis is a good enough proxy for urban designer to understand the dynamic of particular station in fast growing city with fast mtr system extension.

2.6 Road Network Analysis

Operationalizing Macro-meso network design analysis Road Network

Inter-accessibility between neighbourhoods: 2,000 m

Inter-accessibility between new towns, urban core and new towns: 8,000 m

Inter-accessibility across part of the city

13,000 m

Inter-accessibility HK-SZ 24,000 m

Inter-accessibility between city in GBA 50,000 m

Inter-accessibility between city across GBA 100,000 m

As the scale increase frequency of trip decrease.

Hong Kong Primary Roads

This is the current map of Hong Kong main roads network, with BtC calculations for the radius 2000m showing the analysis identify the urban core (mostly red) and all the new towns – network density is well associated with residents and job density in HK.

Shenzhen Primary Roads

Hong Kong + Shenzhen Primary Roads

Given the small length and concentration of road network in Hong Kong, the results are somehow expected as per the metro networks analyses. Although the core centre and subcentes are identified, it shows that in Hong Kong there is a much higher level of agglomeration – high network density on very limited space. HK network is one that has the highest traffic density in the world thus the results are representative of these conditions.

This is the distribution of main roads in the Greater Bay Area. It can be seen that the density of road network in cities around the Pearl River, such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dongguan and Hong Kong, is much higher than that in other areas.

The analysis identifies the key agglomeration clusters in the GBA: Guangzhou, SZ-Hk, Macau-Zuhai. Quingyuan, and Zhaoqing. Dongguan, and Jiangmen seems to have weak agglomeration, although this might be due to missing road network.

The analysis identifies three super clusters: Guangzhou, SZ-HK and Macau, Zuhai and Zongshan.