Tin Shui Wai
Encyclopedia
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, located in Yuen Long District
Yuen Long District
Yuen Long District , is one of the districts of Hong Kong located in the northwest of the New Territories. It had a population of 449,070 in 2001. The district has the youngest population of Hong Kong and the lowest income in the New Territories.-Geography:...
, in the northwestern part of the New Territories
New Territories
New Territories is one of the three main regions of Hong Kong, alongside Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon Peninsula. It makes up 86.2% of Hong Kong's territory. Historically, it is the region described in The Convention for the Extension of Hong Kong Territory...
. Originally a gei wai fish pond area, the ponds were reclaimed for the development of Tin Shui Wai New Town
Tin Shui Wai New Town
Tin Shui Wai New Town is located in northwestern New Territories of Hong Kong. It is a part of the Yuen Long District, and is the second new town in Yuen Long and the eighth in Hong Kong. It is situated 25 kilometres due north-west of Central, Hong Kong on land reclaimed from low lying areas south...
in the late 1980s. The new town is next to historic Ping Shan
Ping Shan
Ping Shan is an area in the New Territories of Hong Kong. It is located west of Yuen Long Town and Shui Pin Wai, and south of Tin Shui Wai. Administratively, it is part of Yuen Long District.-Geography:...
.
History and geography
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
es and villagers converted it into pool
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
s and rice paddies
Paddy field
A paddy field is a flooded parcel of arable land used for growing rice and other semiaquatic crops. Paddy fields are a typical feature of rice farming in east, south and southeast Asia. Paddies can be built into steep hillsides as terraces and adjacent to depressed or steeply sloped features such...
. The pools became gei wai fish ponds where most of the residents were fishermen before the new town was developed. With the decline in aquaculture
Aquaculture
Aquaculture, also known as aquafarming, is the farming of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, molluscs and aquatic plants. Aquaculture involves cultivating freshwater and saltwater populations under controlled conditions, and can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is the...
, most of the fish ponds were abandoned. The Hong Kong Government developed the area into a new town by land reclamation
Land reclamation in Hong Kong
Land is in short supply in Hong Kong, and land reclamation has been conducted there since the mid-19th century.-Projects:One of the earliest and famous project was the Praya Reclamation Scheme, which added 50 to of land in 1890 during the second phase of construction...
.
The development of Tin Shui Wai New Town
Tin Shui Wai New Town
Tin Shui Wai New Town is located in northwestern New Territories of Hong Kong. It is a part of the Yuen Long District, and is the second new town in Yuen Long and the eighth in Hong Kong. It is situated 25 kilometres due north-west of Central, Hong Kong on land reclaimed from low lying areas south...
began in 1987. A total area of about 430 hectares of land was formed by reclamation of the low-lying areas. The Development Zone of 220 hectares, located in the southern part of the new town, has been developed to house about 200,000 people, complete with all infrastructure works and a full range of community facilities. An LRT line and new roads linking the new town to the trunk road network provide good communication with the Yuen Long
Yuen Long District
Yuen Long District , is one of the districts of Hong Kong located in the northwest of the New Territories. It had a population of 449,070 in 2001. The district has the youngest population of Hong Kong and the lowest income in the New Territories.-Geography:...
and Tuen Mun
Tuen Mun District
Tuen Mun District is one of the 18 administrative districts of Hong Kong. Its name was previously 'Tsing Shan' and it changed in the 1970s. It is the westernmost continental district of Hong Kong, located about 32 km from the Kowloon Peninsula, 7 km southwest of Yuen Long and 18 km...
districts and to the urban areas beyond.
Further expansion of the new town into the remaining areas to the north, known as the Reserve Zone, with an area of 210 hectares, commenced in July 1998. The infrastructure was completed in stages from 2000 to 2004 to cope with population intake of the housing developments. West Rail and the extension of the LRT service to the Reserve Zone were also commissioned in late 2003. To the northeastern portion of the new town, a constructed wetland
Constructed wetland
A constructed wetland or wetpark is an artificial wetland, marsh or swamp created as a new or restored habitat for native and migratory wildlife, for anthropogenic discharge such as wastewater, stormwater runoff, or sewage treatment, for land reclamation after mining, refineries, or other...
has been completed which serves as a buffer between the developments in the Reserve Zone and the Mai Po Nature Reserve
Mai Po Marshes
Mai Po Marshes is a nature reserve located near Yuen Long in Hong Kong. It is part of Deep Bay, an internationally significant wetland that is actually a shallow estuary, at the mouths of Sham Chun River, Shan Pui River and Tin Shui Wai Nullah...
. The constructed wetland has been further developed into the Hong Kong Wetland Park
Hong Kong Wetland Park
Hong Kong Wetland Park is a conservation, education and tourism facility, located at the northern part of Tin Shui Wai, in Yuen Long. It was to be an ecological mitigation area for the wetlands lost due to Tin Shui Wai New Town development....
, opening to public in May 2006. The total planned population of Tin Shui Wai new town is about 306,000 while the current population is about 270,000.
Sights
Parts of Tin Shui have a picturesque and tranquil environment. The Hong Kong Wetland ParkHong Kong Wetland Park
Hong Kong Wetland Park is a conservation, education and tourism facility, located at the northern part of Tin Shui Wai, in Yuen Long. It was to be an ecological mitigation area for the wetlands lost due to Tin Shui Wai New Town development....
, demonstrating the diversity of the Hong Kong's wetland
Wetland
A wetland is an area of land whose soil is saturated with water either permanently or seasonally. Wetlands are categorised by their characteristic vegetation, which is adapted to these unique soil conditions....
ecosystem, is located in Tin Shui Wai. The 705 and 706 light rail stops there.
Facilities
In Tin Shui Wai, there are one public swimming pool and two public libraries which are Tin Shui Wai Public Library and Tin Shui Wai North Public Library.Housing
The main residences of Tin Shui Wai are the public housing estatesPublic housing in Hong Kong
Public housing in Hong Kong is a set of mass housing programmes through which the Government of Hong Kong provides affordable housing for lower-income residents. It is a major component of housing in Hong Kong, with nearly half of the population now residing in some form of public housing...
and the 58 residential blocks of Kingswood Villas
Kingswood Villas
Kingswood Villas is a private housing estate in Tin Shui Wai, Yuen Long, New Territories, Hong Kong. It has a total of 58 residential blocks and 15,808 units in seven phases. It is the first private housing estate in Tin Shui Wai and one of the largest private housing estates in Hong Kong...
.
Public housing estates
- Grandeur Terrace
- Tin Chak Estate
- Tin Ching Estate
- Tin Chung Court
- Tin Fu Court
- Tin Oi Court
- Tin Lai Court
- Tin Heng Estate
- Tin Shing Court
- Tin Shui (I) Estate
- Tin Shui (II) Estate
- Tin Tsz Estate
- Tin Wah Estate
- Tin Yan Estate
- Tin Yat Estate
- Tin Yau Court
- Tin Yiu (I) Estate
- Tin Yiu (II) Estate
- Tin Yuet Estate
MTR
Tin Shui Wai is served by the Tin Shui Wai Station of the MTRMTR
Mass Transit Railway is the rapid transit railway system in Hong Kong. Originally opened in 1979, the system now includes 211.6 km of rail with 155 stations, including 86 railway stations and 69 light rail stops...
West Rail Line. The entrances/exits of the station are:
- A: Public transport interchange, Hang Mei Tsuen
- B: Tin Shing Court, Tin Shui Wai Police Station
- C: Tin Yiu Light Rail Stop, Tin Yiu Estate
- D: Tin Yau Court, Tin Tsz Estate
- E1: Tin Shui Wai Light Rail Stop (Platform 1)
- E2: Tin Shui Wai Light Rail Stop (Platform 2)
- E3: Tin Shui Wai Light Rail Stop (Platform 3), Pagoda, Ping Shan Heritage Trail, Sheung Cheung Wai
Light Rail services
The Tin Shui Wai StopTin Shui Wai Stop
Tin Shui Wai Stop is a Light Rail stop and interchange station for West Rail Line. This Light Rail stop is located in Tin Shui Wai Tin Fuk Road, at the ground level of the MTR Tin Shui Wai Station....
of the Light Rail network belongs to Zone 4 for single-ride ticket. It is located at the north-eastern end of the West Rail station on ground level. Platforms 1, 2 and 3 can be reached by escalators at Exit E1, E2 and E3, respectively.
| Route | Destination | Platform | First Train | Last Train |
| 705 | Tin Shui Wai Circular (Anti-clockwise) | 1 | 0517 | 0046 |
| 706 | Tin Shui Wai Circular (Clockwise) | 3 | 0520 | 0045 |
| 751 | Yau Oi | 3 | 0536 | 0046 |
| 751 | Tin Yat | 2 | 0543 | 0059 |