The train G5607 bound for Hong Kong is pictured at the Shenzhen North Railway Station in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong province, Jan 15, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
The number of daily high-speed train tickets for travel between Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland was increased by 5,000 each way on Tuesday, bringing the total number of tickets available in both directions to 30,000.
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region launched the first phase of quarantine-free travel with the mainland on Jan 8 after a three-year hiatus
The Transport and Housing Bureau said on Monday the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link has been operating smoothly since the resumption of services on Jan 15.
ALSO READ: Hong Kong ends COVID isolation orders from Monday
The number of tickets per day was initially capped at 5,000 each way, and was raised to 10,000 on Jan 18 to cope with the surge in demand for cross-boundary travel during the Chinese New Year holidays.
A bureau spokesperson explained that after reviewing the latest operations and ticket sales at Hong Kong West Kowloon Station – the Hong Kong terminus of the high-speed rail link – with the mainland authorities in the past two weeks, it was agreed that the number of tickets could be raised again.
ALSO READ: Spring Festival travel boom for Hong Kong, Macao SARs
The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region launched the first phase of quarantine-free travel with the mainland on Jan 8 after a three-year hiatus.