Macao Light Rapid Transit Corporation Limited (MLM) announced yesterday that its Seac Pai Van Line will officially come into operation on Friday, with the new line between Union Hospital and Seac Pai Van to open its doors to commuters at 1:11 p.m. that day.
According to the LRT operator, the 1.6-kilometre extension will start to welcome its first passengers at Seac Pai Van Station on Friday afternoon, connecting to Union Hospital Station and passing through Estrada do Istmo (路氹連貫公路), Rotunda de Seac Pai Van (石排灣圓形地) and Estrada de Seac Pai Van (石排灣馬路) as well as Rotunda Flor de Lótus (蓮花圓形地).
The announcement was made in a statement yesterday, which underlined that “if passengers start or end their journey at Seac Pai Van Station or Union Hospital Station, Union Hospital Station will be counted as a stop when calculating the fare”.
The statement noted that with the opening of the Seac Pai Van Line, the Macau Light Rail Transit (LRT) will enable line transfer for the first time, further facilitating public access to the public Union Hospital, while also providing residents and tourists with more options when travelling between Taipa, Coloane’s Seac Pai Van community, and the peninsula’s Barra (Ma Kok) area.
Most of the LRT stations are in Cotai, the city’s entertainment area between Coloane and Taipa.
The LRT has been in operation for about five years, with the addition of the Barra Station on the Taipa Line which opened in December last year, totalling 12.5 kilometres and 12 stations. On September 1, the LRT operator opened Union Hospital Station, connecting the Taipa Line to the Seac Pai Van Line, in order to make it easier for the public to get to the hospital.
After Friday’s opening of Seac Pai Van Station, the LRT network will consist of 14 stations, two of them on the Seac Pai Van Line.
The LRT fare is calculated according to the number of stations. Except for journeys between the Barra and Ocean stations, a general single ticket for a ride of 10 to 12 stops amounts to 12 patacas.
According to the Public Works Bureau (DSOP), Seac Pai Van Station is located on Estrada de Seac Pai Van, with entrances on the south and north sides and a footbridge connecting to the public housing area there, while Union Hospital Station is located on Estrada do Istmo, with entrances on the east and west sides and a footbridge connecting to the entrance of the hospital’s Macao Medical Centre.
The Seac Pai Van Line construction project got off the ground in September 2021, with its completion date having been delayed to March this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the construction of additional fire hydrants in the surrounding area.
According to previous local and Hengqin government announcements, the 2.2-kilometre Hengqin Line coving 2.2 kilometres is targeted to open by the end of this year. The spur line will comprise two stations: HE1 Station, located near the Taipa Line’s Lotus Bridge Station, and HE2 Station under the joint Macau-Hengqin checkpoint. Some 900 metres of the Hengqin Line will be underground. With the opening of Hengqin Line, the LRT network will comprise 16 stations.
The 7.7-kilometre, six-station LRT East Line between the Macau-Gongbei Barrier Gate land border checkpoint and Pac On in Taipa via the Zone A and Zone E land reclamation area is under construction, slated for completion in 2028.
This file photo taken in May by the Public Works Bureau (DSOP) shows the LRT Seac Pai Van Station in Coloane.
