MTR Corporation

Hong Kong

MTR Corporation operates the Mass Transit Railway, which provides public transportation in Hong Kong.

The company also develops residential and commercial properties near its stations.  MTR’s rail lines are primarily electric, so the company’s largest environmental impact is electricity consumption.  MTR has implemented several energy-saving technologies, such as an automatic control system that drives trains at a speed and frequency for optimum energy use, and a regenerative braking system for rail cars, which has resulted in rail cars using 25% less energy.  The company recently released a carbon-footprint tracking system, The Life Cycle Carbon Assessment, which predicts and measures embodied carbon dioxide in the design, construction, and operation of MTR’s rail lines and properties.   MTR believes that this sort of initiative is the first of its kind in the rail transport industry.

As a result of the company’s merger with KCRC, MTR has expanded its operations to mainland China.  China presents significant social and environmental concerns, including corruption, lax law enforcement, and workers rights violations; however, the benefits of developing effective infrastructure for public transportation in China are invaluable.  Areas for future improvement include increasing green building goals and managing risks in China.

http://www.mtr.com.hk/