HONG KONG – Cross-boundary passenger traffic between the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and Shenzhen reached a record high of 1.34 million trips on August 10, according to a statement released by the HKSAR government on Monday.

The surge in cross-boundary travel not only reflects the mutual engagement between the residents of Hong Kong and Shenzhen, but also continuously injects momentum into the economic development of both cities, said Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki.

Chan made the remarks during a meeting in Shenzhen on Monday with Qin Weizhong, mayor of the Shenzhen Municipal Government.

The meeting was held to exchange views on further enhancing communication and coordination between departments of HKSAR and the Chinese mainland at boundary control points (BCPs) and address the increasing demand for cross-boundary travel, according to the government statement.

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At the meeting, both sides agreed to strengthen the existing joint notification mechanism to facilitate better communication, information sharing, and dissemination to boost the clearance capacity at BCPs.

Special attention was given to the popularity of the Liantang Port/Heung Yuen Wai BCP, particularly among tour groups from the mainland, whose arrivals are often concentrated on weekends. To accommodate the increasing traffic, both parties pledged to enhance cooperation and share operational best practices to improve tourist experience.

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Chans shared that the HKSAR government has been proactively preparing for peak weekend passenger traffic, including operating additional counters and e-Channels, as well as setting up temporary counters at BCPs.

Through flexible manpower deployment, all clearance counters and kiosks at busy BCPs are operated to ease passenger and vehicular flows, ensuring smooth and orderly immigration clearance, Chan added.