Rail fans make tracks for limited edition model trains as MTR exhibition sets off
Dozens of rail fans queued up to get their hands on limited edition model trains on sale at Hung Hom MTR station from yesterday morning to mark the launch of an exhibition showcasing three historic locomotives.
Enthusiast Alvin Ma was among the first to snap up the model MTR trains, securing two of the rare miniatures.
“I had already pre-ordered one online [which has not arrived yet], but the exhibition is opening today and I wanted to be able to take photos with it and the real train right away,” he said.
The 19-year-old university student was among those visiting the “Station Rail Voyage” exhibition, which opened in Hung Hom yesterday to mark the MTR Corporation’s 45th anniversary and runs until the end of the year.
The first-generation “Yellow Head” electric train used in the 1980s and 90s was considered an event highlight, with limited edition models of the locomotive being sold at the exhibition.
“I had not seen or ridden this train before, because it had already been phased out to make way for the MLR when I was born,” Ma said.
“But my family has told me a lot about the model, which is why I’m interested. The seats are more comfortable than I expected and the train exudes this vintage feel.”
The two other trains on display at the exhibition are the GM-L56 and the MLR.
Ma said he had been a train aficionado for a decade as there was more to them than transport, with their designs and stations’ reflecting societal changes.
The enthusiast said his passion for trains had won him several friends. He recalled at age 12 he sparked up a conversation on the topic with a fellow youngster while riding the MTR home.
The pair were chatting so happily that they missed their stops and almost got into trouble for arriving at Lo Wu station without home return permits, Ma said.
Hung Hom resident and father-of-one Daniel Au said he was buying a Yellow Head model train for his five-year-old daughter, since she was curious about most things at that age and he wanted to share something from his own childhood. “She definitely has not seen this before. This is something from my time and I have fond memories of it and I’d like to pass this on,” the educator, who is in his 30s, said.
An IT worker who only gave his name as Ho said he had stopped by specifically to buy the new miniature since it was sold out online, adding he had been collecting the model trains for two decades and now had a complete set. “I love how realistic these models are,” the 62-year-old said. “I was around before the MTR came into existence. I witnessed it coming into being. There’s an inexplicable affinity for them.”
Businessman Kei Chan visited the exhibition with university student Ma after the pair bonded on social media over their shared enthusiasm for trains.
Chan, who is in his thirties, described seeing the Yellow Head train on display as a trip down memory lane.
“What’s special about trains in Hong Kong is the diversity,” Chan said. “There are trains from the UK, Japan and South Korea, as well as those that could go at various speeds, from MTR trains to the Airport Express to the highspeed rail. Very few places have so many different models in such a small place.”