Services To Border Will Be Ramped Up, Says MTR

The MTR Corporation said on Friday that it is ramping up train services to Lok Ma Chau Station, which will be the busiest border crossing when quarantine-free travel with the mainland resumes.

Up to 35,000 Hong Kong residents can head north each day via Lok Ma Chau from January 8, with the same number of mainlanders able to travel in the opposite direction.

On top of this, SAR and mainland residents can return to their own side of the border without having to secure a place under the quota arrangement.

Crossing the border at Shenzhen Bay and Man Kam To will also be possible.

MTR bosses said trains to Lok Ma Chau will run every four to eight minutes for most of the day.

"As we are increasing the frequency of trains from about 90 pairs [before January 8] to 135 pairs, we believe that we are absolutely capable of handling [the passenger load]," said the railway company’s head of cross-boundary operations, Cheung Chi-keung.

"We will closely monitor the actual passenger volume after the reopening, and also keep in close contact with the government to monitor the time slots during which people cross the border, as well as cross-border arrangements, and will make adjustments when necessary."

The railway company also said it will deploy more than 100 additional staff members to assist with operations on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Citybus said the frequency of buses on its B3X route between Tuen Mun Town Centre and Shenzhen Bay Port will be doubled, with a bus every 15 minutes.

Head of service delivery Louis Kung said the company expects 3,000 passengers each day to use the B3X route once border restrictions are eased, around 20 percent of the pre-pandemic level.

"We hope with more quotas or further reopening of the border, our passenger load will increase and we can resume more bus services," Kung said, adding that Citybus is also increasing services to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.

Kowloon Motor Bus said it will resume its B1 service connecting Tin Shui Wai, Yuen Long and Lok Ma Chau on Sunday.