Directed & Produced by Amanda Cai
The theme that I have chosen is Information City: Hong Kong’s Shared Knowledge, focusing on Hong Kong’s MTR (Mass Transit Railway) passageways and trains. Specifically, I focus on the vast amount of information available through and regarding the MTR. On the one hand, Hong Kong MTRs are essentially a gold mine of information, from the multitude of signs denoting exits A, B, C, all the way to N or P, to the several help counters posted throughout every station, to the live signs indicating the number of minutes till the next train. As an exchange student at HKU, my few months here in the city have already demonstrated to me the importance of information, signage, and knowledge in navigating Hong Kong.
Public transportation in Hong Kong, to me, symbolizes a sense of shared knowledge and community. The city is widely diverse and densely populated, with over 7,000,000 people living there, and 6,659 people per square kilometer. The multicultural city has a vibrant immigration history, with a non-ethnic Chinese annual population growth rate of 5.8% (compared to 0.5% for the general population). The basic nature of Hong Kong’s population – both its multiculturalism and density – calls for deliberate and conscientious planning of public transportation. The structural integrity of the metro system is integral to the city’s everyday happenings, allowing people to move freely from one destination to another, whether it be for leisure or labor. As a result, the mental knowledge of how to situate and navigate oneself within this transportation structure is deeply written into the minds of Hong Kongers, both on a literal sense (where signage informs people’s actions) and on a shared knowledge level.
That is why I chose to conduct my research on Hong Kong’s MTR system, specifically the way that information is displayed and distributed so that every participating member of the system knows how to make use of that information. Hong Kong’s public transportation system has been cited to be a “unique genius”, a gold standard for subway and bus stations worldwide – in fact, the MTR holds the record for the highest farebox recovery ratio in the world. The reason why the MTR works so efficiently, for ordinary citizens, businesses, and the MTR Corporation alike, is because they have been able to take advantage of “Value Capture”. Essentially, this means that the MTR relies on a sort of symbiotic relationship with businesses, receiving a cut of profits in return for providing a convenient means of transportation throughout the entire city. As a result, the MTR’s impact is felt through essentially every aspect of the city, as the majority of the population will use it to get around. This model works especially well due to the structure of Hong Kong as a whole – there is very little reliance on personal cars, so public transport is truly a central part of the city architecture.
When looking at the characteristics of the Hong Kong MTR, there are several things that make it unique and informational. For one, a special detail about each MTR is its unique color: the bright colors of the railway line’s stations were intentionally chosen with two goals in mind. First, to brighten up the underground subway system, one that would otherwise be dull and gloomy with its lack of natural light and fresh air. The bright colors of the MTR bring a semblance of life to the stations, transforming the space to one of liveliness. Second, according to the MTR chief architect Andrew Mead, the bright colors were used as a signaling tool to create a unique identity for each station, as “back in the 1970s, there was still a high level of illiteracy”.
Of course, things are much different now. However, the vibrant colors still serve as a reminder as to how even without words, information could be conveyed by the MTR in a way that allowed it to run efficiently. According to a case study by Tianjiao Zhao and Kin Wai Michael Siu, the MTR functions through a “user-centered design”. Their research primarily focuses on boundaries, a concept that overlaps with the notion of information, as spaces serve as boundaries that denote different functions within the MTR. For example, boundaries can be defined as “texts, lines, planes, and objects”. They can also be more subtle entities, such as elevators or ATMs. Regardless, boundaries signify information to people in a way that generates habits, placing restrictions on some behavior and enabling others. The same could be said about the more obvious signage and markings throughout MTRs. Signs contain text with both Cantonese and English, the primary languages here, guiding people on where to head. Blinking markers on the train itself inform passengers on their live location, prompting them to get off at the right time. Arrows on the ground direct the flow of people, preventing unnecessary foot traffic. The MTR is an incredibly intuitive experience, even for one who has only stepped foot into Hong Kong for the first time. The MTR is not only a means of transportation, but also an essential aspect of Hong Kong’s collective psyche.
In filming my video, I wanted to record an experience that mirrored that of a typical journey through the MTR. So, I started at the HKU MTR and filmed my trip to Mong Kok and back, documenting the passageways I walked past, the flow of traffic, the transfer I had to take, and the signs informing me where to head. With my filming, I aimed to make the transitions between shots connected, so as to demonstrate the abundance of information and details that are present every step of the way. I also wanted to depict how other people made use of the MTR, showing how despite the great amount of information, most seemed to already know where they were going, likely due to their familiarity with their path. Yet, it is important to realize that the MTR’s information is essential for a first-timer to gain their footing. Every “regular” starts somewhere and that begins with taking in all the information the MTR has to give.
Sources
https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/hong-kong-mtr-success-story/index.html
https://www.timeout.com/hong-kong/things-to-do/history-of-hong-kong-mtr-stations
https://hongkongfp.com/2018/02/25/hong-kong-diverse-far-inclusive-heres-can-change/
https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/hong-kong-population
Amanda Anne Cai
UID: 3033112121
MTR and ‘information city’ are a good mix for investigation and your intention to study on the signage sounds very intriguing. Your text is well-written and elaborated. You have also included some good citations in your written submission.
However, the analysis demonstrated in your video is not as strong as what you have written. The ideas that your video has demonstrated mostly remain on the surface. Generalizing MTR works for ‘ordinary citizens’ may also have been over-simplified. For example, one way to sharpen your work is to focus on the colour system of the MTR network (which you have also mentioned this in your work) and research on this notion deep so you can reveal more interesting findings and untold stories to your audience.