Train passengers welcome flexible ticketing to Futian

Some high-speed rail passengers on Sunday welcomed a new policy that allows them to change to a later journey if they miss their train to Futian, the central business district of Shenzhen. Previously, passengers could only change their itinerary once - before the train departed. From Monday, the MTR's flexi-trip policy will allow passengers to make up to three last-minute changes to their journeys from West Kowloon to Futian or vice versa. They will be able to change their trips online, at ticket machines or at station ticket counters within an hour after their trains depart. Futian is one of the most popular destinations for high-speed rail passengers from Hong Kong. There are 38 trains a day between West Kowloon and Futian, and the journey takes just 14 minutes. A visitor from Shenzhen surnamed Lo told RTHK it was good to have the new system. "Sometimes we have to find our way because we don't know the area, and we end up missing our train," she said. The MTR Corporation said passengers holding second class tickets may not have a seat if they change their journey, but Lo said she would not mind standing on the train. DAB lawmaker Lau Kwok-fan said MTR should consider disclosing the available capacity of each train. "We are concerned about whether passengers can definitely change to another train on the same day because we don't necessarily know how many seats [are left]," he said. "I suggest that they publish on their website the standing capacity of each train and how much of it is available." He added that he hoped the scheme could be extended to more stations in the future.