New look for Hong Kong’s trams as operator aims to widen its horizons

The company has redesigned the familiar logo and is hoping to use its expertise to establish modern tramways and driverless systems across Asia

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“We are proud to operate these iconic trams,” says Elisabeth Borne, CEO of RATP group, the parent company of Hong Kong Tramways. Photo: Xiaomei Chen

Published: 8:03am, 10 Apr 2017Updated: 8:10am, 10 Apr 2017

Hong Kong’s iconic trams will be rebranded later this month as the operator looks to stay ahead of the game in an increasingly competitive environment and expand into mainland China and Asia.

The logo that has been in place for 43 years is being replaced to emphasise what the company calls the emotional link of the “ding dings”, as they are affectionately known, with the public.

In an exclusive interview with the Post, Elisabeth Borne, chief executive officer of parent company RATP Group, said it hoped to use the success story of Hong Kong’s trams as a springboard into the wider market.

The Hong Kong Tramways logo in place for 43 years. Photo: Handout

“There’s a big need for modern tramway and driverless metro technologies in mega cities around the world, especially in Asia. We can offer our expertise to China cities. We have been in talks with major mainland cities about sharing our expertise,” she said.

RATP group is the world’s fifth largest public transport company and already runs various transport businesses worldwide, including the Nanjing Bus networks on the mainland, Seoul Metro Line 9 in South Korea and Mumbai Metro Line 1 in India.

It suffered a rare setback in Hong Kong last week when a tram toppled over in Central injuring 14 passengers. The driver was arrested for dangerous driving.