MTR Shuts Yuen Long Station Hours Before Protest

MTR authorities shut down the Yuen Long station four hours ahead of a planned 7pm protest on Saturday, triggering complaints from residents in the area who found themselves stranded and were forced to find other means of transport.

The MTR had announced that they will shut the station at 3pm before a sit-in that anti-extradition bill protesters were planning to hold there. A group of riot police officers were also stationed there.

Additional staff were posted by MTR at the station and they posted notices about the station's closure at different exits. Some members of the public weren't even allowed to pass through the station even before it was shut.

"When I arrived at the station at around 2:50pm, the gates were already closed! Wasn't the station supposed to close at 3pm? Who authorised the early closure? This is extremely annoying, since when did the MTR become privatised by the police?" a resident told RTHK.

Some residents in the area were not happy with the inconvenience, with one person accusing police and MTR colluding together.

Shops and malls nearby have also rolled down their gates ahead of the station closure.

Protesters are planning to gather at the Yuen Long MTR Station at 7pm, exactly two months after a group of white-clad men attacked protesters and passengers at the same location.