鐵路通 HK MTR Pass — Hong Kong MTR arrival times, fares and last trains
Which platform, how many minutes, how much it costs, and whether you have missed the last one — the four things you actually stand on a concourse wondering.
The questions a timetable does not answer
Hong Kong's rail network runs often enough that a timetable is nearly meaningless — what you want is the next two or three trains, right now, on the platform you are standing on. And on the way home late, the question changes entirely: not when the next train is, but whether there is another one at all.
鐵路通 pulls live next-train data from the government's open data feed and puts it on a screen you can read at a glance, with fares and first and last train times beside it. It is an unofficial app, built on public data, with no relationship to the MTR Corporation.
Hong Kong MTR arrival times, and everything around them
Heavy rail, Light Rail, fares and the awkward edge cases.
- Live next-train arrivals. Real-time estimates per station and direction from the open data feed. When the API returns a service notice instead of a train list — a suspension, a terminus, or simply no data — the app shows the notice rather than an empty screen, which is exactly the moment you most need to be told something.
- Light Rail too. The Light Rail network in the north-west New Territories has its own live feed and its own screen, which most third-party MTR apps skip entirely.
- Fares between any two stations. Fare lookup with the different fare types, so the cost of a journey is known before the gate rather than after.
- First and last trains. Per station and direction. This is the single most useful piece of information after midnight and the hardest to find quickly anywhere else.
- Journey planning with a choice of priority. Plan from A to B and rank the result by fastest or cheapest — two genuinely different answers on a network with interchange choices.
- Disruption notices. Service faults surface as a banner rather than being buried, and a background check can alert you about the lines you care about.
- Favourites and nearest station. Your regular stations sit at the top, and the app can identify the nearest station so a commute is one tap from opening the app.
- Built for older eyes. Large type, high contrast and generous tap targets throughout, with optional spoken announcements — this is the design brief the app was built to, not an accessibility afterthought.
Unofficial, and clear about it
The app has no affiliation with the MTR Corporation. Everything it shows comes from Hong Kong's public open data, which is exactly why it can be free, ad-supported and free of a login. The trade-off is that when the official feed is late or wrong, the app is late or wrong too — and it says so instead of presenting stale figures as current.
Location is used only to find your nearest station, and there is no account. Nothing about where you travel is uploaded.
Who it is for
Daily commuters who want two numbers and nothing else. Older passengers, for whom the large-type layout and voice announcements are the reason to use this rather than the official app. And visitors, who need fares and a route more than they need a season-ticket balance.
It is also the app to have open at 12:40am, deciding between a last train and a taxi.
Data source and disclaimer
Real-time train data comes from the Hong Kong government's public open data platform at data.gov.hk. 鐵路通 is an unofficial app and is not affiliated with, endorsed by or operated by the MTR Corporation.
Arrival estimates are as good as the upstream feed. During a major disruption, treat station staff and official announcements as authoritative. The app is free and ad-supported.
Frequently asked questions
Is this the official MTR app? No. It is an unofficial app built on Hong Kong government open data, with no affiliation to the MTR Corporation.
Does it show Light Rail as well as heavy rail? Yes. The Light Rail network in the north-west New Territories has its own live arrivals screen.
Can it tell me the last train? Yes. First and last train times are listed per station and direction — the thing you actually need after midnight.
Does it work out fares? Yes, between any two stations, including the different fare types.
Why does it sometimes show a message instead of train times? Because the feed returned a service status rather than an arrival list — a suspension, a terminus, or no data. The app shows that message instead of pretending it has times.