Po Lam Station

Po Lam 寶琳
MTR rapid transit station
Platform 1
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	寶琳
Simplified Chinese	宝琳
Literal meaning	Precious Gem
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Bǎolín Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization bou2 lam4 Jyutping bou2 lam4
General information
Location	Po Lam Tseung Kwan O, Sai Kung District, Hong Kong
Coordinates	22°19′21″N 114°15′29″E / 22.3224°N 114.258°E / 22.3224; 114.258Coordinates: 22°19′21″N 114°15′29″E / 22.3224°N 114.258°E / 22.3224; 114.258
Owned by	MTR Corporation
Operated by	MTR Corporation
Line(s)	Tseung Kwan O Line
Platforms	1 (1 side platform)
Tracks	1
Construction
Structure type	At-grade
Disabled access	Yes
Other information
Station code	POA
History
Opened	18 August 2002 (2002-08-18)
Services
Preceding station   MTR   Following station Hang Hau towards North Point Tseung Kwan O Line Terminus
Location
Po Lam Location within the MTR system

Po Lam (Chinese: 寶琳) is an MTR station located in Po Lam, in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It is the northern terminus of the Tseung Kwan O Line. The next station on the line is Hang Hau. Although the station is at ground level, it is covered, though not completely sealed, from the outside.

The station's main entrance is on Mau Yip Road, where five pedestrian footbridges link the station to a public transport interchange for ground transport. It is possible to directly access Metro City and The Pinnacle from the concourse of the station. Another footbridge crosses Po Fung Road and enables direct access from Po Lam Estate, Yan Ming Court and Verbena Heights.

Unlike most MTR stations, the concourse, gates and platform are at the same level; and there is only one platform from which trains depart, in the same direction as they arrived. This necessitates the halting of trains from Hang Hau midway between the stations while a train currently at the station departs. At the same time, trains arriving at Po Lam stay for a much shorter time before departing, when compared to other MTR terminals. The single-track design (and the consequent lengthened train turnback time) limits the maximum train service frequency of the Tseung Kwan O Line.

The original design of the station was to have two tracks sharing an island platform, and a concourse above the platforms. However, the MTRC, on the advice of the contractors, decided that the concourse would replace what was going to be the second track and part of the island platform. The MTRC decided on the current layout after realising that it would be unlikely that the Tseung Kwan O Line would to be extended beyond Po Lam, as well as to save construction costs. With the current layout, passengers can enter or exit the station from the platform in less than one minute.