Residents line up to buy tickets at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station on Jan 12, 2023 with the Hong Kong section of the Express Rail Link scheduled to reopen on Sunday. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
Tickets for high-speed trains from West Kowloon Railway Station to Guangzhou East for Sunday and the remainder of the week were sold out in about two hours on Thursday, just after the authorities started the sale of a combined total of 10,000 tickets per day available for cross-boundary rail trips.
The number of high-speed tickets is additional to the 60,000 daily quota currently set for Hong Kong residents traveling to the mainland since Jan 8, with the cross-boundary rail trips to be resumed from Sunday.
As of 2 pm on Thursday, all first- and second-class seats on Sunday’s high-speed trains from West Kowloon to Guangzhou East had been snapped.
By about 4:30 pm, most of the tickets for all destinations before the Chinese New Year were sold out except for a few still remaining for journeys on Jan 16 and 17 to Shenzhen’s Futian station and Shenzhen North station, according to the website of the national railway ticketing system.
The city’s sole high-speed train terminal, West Kowloon Railway Station, also reopened at 2 pm on Thursday to allow travelers to buy tickets and make travel inquiries
Passengers in Hong Kong can purchase high-speed train tickets to stations in Shenzhen, Dongguan and Guangzhou from the 12306 website and mobile application — the national railway ticketing system — or from designated travel agencies, MTR, the city's high-speed railway operator, announced on Thursday.
Passengers can buy tickets online using their Home Return Permit and their phone for real-name registration.
After payment, they will receive a QR code displaying their order with passenger name, ticket gate and carriage seat number in the app.
READ MORE: Border reopening with mainland: Lifeline for HK
The city’s sole high-speed train terminal, West Kowloon Railway Station, also reopened at 2 pm on Thursday to allow travelers to buy tickets and make travel inquiries, the MTR said at a media briefing.
Residents line up to buy tickets at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station on Jan 12, 2023. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
Earlier on Thursday, Secretary for Transport and Logistics Lam Sai-hung said the city's cross-border high-speed rail service will be resumed on Sunday. Speaking to the media, Lam said a total of 5,000 tickets each way per day will be available for passengers. In total, there will be up to 10,000 passengers boarding high-speed trains to travel between the mainland and Hong Kong each day, he said.
No prior bookings for checkpoint services are required for passengers boarding high-speed trains departing from or entering the city, Lam added. The West Kowloon Station checkpoint will operate from 6.30 am to 11.30 pm every day, as it did before closing due to the pandemic.
Lam believes the resumption of the high-speed rail service is attractive because it has been suspended for three years due to the pandemic, and there are already many attractions near West Kowloon, such as M+ and the Hong Kong Palace Museum.
Asked when cross-boundary bus services will resume, Lam said that the government would first need to consult with relevant mainland authorities after reviewing the resumption of high-speed rail services, adding that was no timetable for resuming cross-boundary bus services at present.
Residents line up to buy tickets at the Hong Kong West Kowloon Station on Jan 12, 2023 with the Hong Kong section of the Express Rail Link scheduled to reopen on Sunday. (CALVIN NG / CHINA DAILY)
China Railway Guangzhou Group Corporation announced that it will arrange an average of 38.5 pairs of high-speed trains every day running from stations in Guangzhou and Shenzhen to Hong Kong West Kowloon Station.
West Kowloon Station will initially operate trains to Shenzhen’s Futian, Shenzhen North and Guangzhou South Station and Guangzhou East Station.
High-speed train tickets will be sold on a real-name basis and passengers can board trains with their identification documents. Cross-border train passengers are required to produce a negative COVID-19 nucleic acid test taken within 48 hours of traveling across the border.
The MTR said passengers boarding the trains should wear a mask throughout the journey; alcohol-based hand rubs and sprays are not permitted on trains.
READ MORE: Deeper integration with Chinese mainland is key
An electronic queueing system has been introduced for West Kowloon Station’s taxi stand, according to the MTR. Passengers can pick up a ticket on their mobile phone to avoid having to wait onsite. When the taxi assigned to them is approaching the taxi station, the system will automatically inform the passenger.
Duty-free stores, money exchange shops and other businesses will reopen at the station and provide services to passengers, the MTR said.
On Jan 8, Hong Kong reopened four checkpoints connecting with the mainland. In the initial stage, 60,000 people are allowed to travel each way between Hong Kong and the mainland through the seven checkpoints in operation every day. They are not subject to quarantine measures, but they must provide a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 48 hours prior to traveling. They also need to have made a prior booking through designated websites if they opt to pass through the three land ports.