Central is an MTR station located in the Central area of Hong Kong Island. The station's livery is firebrick red but brown on the platforms. The station is the southern terminus of the, a stop on the, and connects to Hong Kong station (via an underground passageway), which serves the and the .
The station was originally named Chater Station (due to its location near Chater Road). It was initially conceived to cater to 330,000 passengers daily and was planned to be long – one of the longest stations in the world.[1] More than 200,000 passengers use this station daily. The longest distance between two exits is approximately 700m.
Central station was included in the Hong Kong Mass Transport Study, a system proposed in September 1967.[2] Together with Western Market station, it was intended to serve as an interchange station for the and Island line. In the recommended system, the Tsuen Wan line would terminate at (in the report also known as Naval Dockyard). The station was originally planned to be located under Des Voeux Road Central between Jubilee Street and Pedder Street.
In 1970, in the Hong Kong Mass Transit Further Studies, the station was proposed as two separate but connected stations: Chater station (Chinese: 遮打站) under Chater Road and Pedder station (Chinese: 必打站) under Pedder Street), which would serve the Kong Kow line (now Tsuen Wan line) and Island line respectively.
Contracts 106 and 809, which consist of the construction of the two stations and tunnels, were awarded to Metro Joint Venture, comprising Hochtief AG, Dragages et Travaux Publics, Gammon (HK) Limited, and Sentab.
The station first opened as Chater station on 12 February 1980 as the terminus of Only a portion of the station came into operation as the Island line had not been opened yet.
The station was named Chater in English but 中環 in Chinese. This would be misleading as many thought that the Chinese name would be 遮打, a transliteration and the Chinese name of the namesake road.
When the Island line between Admiralty and Chai Wan opened on 31 May 1985, MTR renamed Chater to Central[3] [4] together with the renaming of some other stations on the Kwun Tong and Tsuen Wan lines.[5] [6]
The construction contract for the station on the Island line was awarded to the Aoki/ joint venture.[7] Construction for the Island line was carried out in early 1983 and connected the new platforms with the original structure. The Island line began servicing Central on 23 May 1986 when it was extended beyond Admiralty to Sheung Wan and the Island line platforms came into service.
The construction contract for the station on the Island line was awarded to the Aoki/Tobishima joint venture.[8] Construction for the Island line was carried out in early 1983 and connected the new platforms with the original structure. The Island line began servicing Central on 23 May 1986 when it was extended beyond Admiralty to Sheung Wan and the Island line platforms came into service.
One component of the Airport Core Programme[9] between 1991 and 1998 was a railway connecting the new Hong Kong International Airport to the city centre. To link Central with the nearby Hong Kong station, the southern terminus of the Tung Chung line and the Airport Express, a passageway was built under Connaught Road Central to connect the two stations. The passageway starts at the Pedder Street concourse and was built with a design similar to that of Hong Kong station. The passage connects the paid areas of both stations (particularly from Central to the Tung Chung line of Hong Kong station). There is no unpaid link (though access to the Airport Express line at Hong Kong station from other lines at Central or vice versa requires an out-of-system transfer as the Airport Express line follows a separate fare scheme from the rest of the MTR system).
Central station has four platforms on three levels.
The top level includes platform 3 and is built beneath Des Voeux Road Central at the intersection of Pedder Street, stretching from World-Wide House to Alexandra House, on the northern side of the road. The platform serves Chai Wan-bound trains on the Island line and this level includes the connecting walkway to Hong Kong station.
The middle level includes platforms 1 and 2 using a shared island. They serve the Tsuen Wan line and were built directly under Chater Road, extending from Des Voeux Road Central to Club Street.
The bottom level, two levels from the top level, is platform 4, for Island line trains in the direction of Kennedy Town.
Passengers from platform 3 transferring to platforms 1 or 2 use the regular escalators on the Chater Road concourse. There are designated escalators from platforms 1 and 2 to platform 4 for the sole purpose of transfer.
The Tsuen Wan line platforms are straight and were built by cut-and-cover. Most of the length of the Island line platforms is the same, although the eastern part (towards) is curved and the gap is large, as they are located in sections of bored tunnels and have the curved walls typical of most other stations on the Island line.
The end of the Admiralty stabling siding shared by Tsuen Wan and Island lines is located below the Tsuen Wan line platforms.[10] [11] [12]
| G | Street level | Exits |
| P | Chater Road concourse | – |
| L1 | Pedder Street concourse | Customer Service, MTRShops Hang Seng Bank, vending machines Octopus promotion machine |
| Chater Road concourse | Customer Service, MTRShops ATM | |
| L2 | Chater Road concourse | Customer Service, MTRShops Hang Seng Bank, vending machines |
| Pedder Street concourse | Customer Service, MTRShops Subway to Hong Kong station for & Octopus promotion machine, i-centre internet service | |
| Side platform, doors will open on the left | ||
| Platform 3 | towards → | |
| L3 | Platform 1 | towards (Admiralty) → |
| Island platform, doors will open on the left or right | ||
| Platform 2 | Tsuen Wan line towards Tsuen Wan (Admiralty) → | |
| L4 | Side platform, doors will open on the right | |
| Platform 4 | ← Island line towards | |
Central station stretches underneath Chater Road from Statue Square in the east and underneath Des Voeux Road to Li Yuen Street East in the west. The distance between the easternmost and westernmost exits is approximately 700m. There are 13 entrances, connecting buildings, shopping malls, main roads and ground transport facilities nearby.
Central station is one of the major transport hubs of Hong Kong. It is commonly used as a connecting hub for commuters travelling from the Tung Chung line to the Island line, and Tsuen Wan line. The area around Central station and Hong Kong station offers a wide range of transport options, including the tramway, buses, ferries, minibuses and more. (See also Transport in Hong Kong)