The Executive Council on Tuesday approved the merger of Citybus and New World First Bus under one franchise in hopes of deploying their resources more flexibly.
It also granted the merged operator a new 10-year franchise, which will run until July 1, 2033.
In a press release issued on Tuesday, a government spokesman said it has merged the two existing franchises with largely overlapping service areas.
“It will facilitate continuous improvement and rationalization of the franchised bus network on Hong Kong Island, and enable the bus company to deploy its resources more flexibly for enhancing existing services or introducing new services and providing more comprehensive public transport ancillary facilities that keep up with the times for the benefit of passengers,” he added.
The spokesman also said that the merger exercise will not come with any changes in fares for any existing routes.
“Also, [the new merged franchise] will strive to enhance bus service reliability and further improve its lost trip situation,” he said.
As part of the merger, the government said it would amend the expiry date of the existing Citybus Limited (Franchise for Hong Kong Island and Cross-Harbour bus network) from June 1, 2026, to July 1, 2023 — so it is the same as that of the current franchise of New World First Bus Services — before granting a new 10-year franchise covering the merger of the two bus networks.
The new franchise will be named Citybus Limited (Franchise for the Urban and New Territories bus network) and commence upon expiry of the two relevant existing franchises on July 1, 2023, and run until July 1, 2033.
Citybus and New World First Bus are both subsidiaries of bus giant Bravo Transport.
The Executive Council also granted a new 10-year franchise to Long Win Bus Company Limited, which will commence upon expiry of its current franchise on May 1, 2023, and run until May 1, 2033, and the separate Citybus Limited (Franchise for the Airport and North Lantau bus network), which will commence upon expiry of its current franchise on May 1, 2023, and run until May 1, 2033.
The spokesman said that the operators have all along been providing proper and efficient services to passengers under their current franchises.
