The new Huanggang Port is ready for safe, efficient and smooth operation, Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung said on Friday, stressing that the authorities are fully confident that a robust system and sufficient manpower will support the facility’s high-profile opening on Monday.
The port, located just to the east of the Lok Ma Chau Control Point, will provide 24-hour clearance services for passengers and passenger vehicles upon opening.
Passenger clearance services between the temporary port building of the Huanggang Port in Shenzhen and the Lok Ma Chau in Hong Kong will be suspended during the period.
On Monday, the Hong Kong Security Bureau’s Emergency Monitoring and Support Centre and a frontline command center will be activated to monitor vehicle and pedestrian flows as well as surrounding traffic, ensuring a smooth operation, Tang told the media on Friday.
The authorities have also set up a joint command center with the Shenzhen port authorities to coordinate operations and ensure safe, orderly operation, he said.
Service ambassadors familiar with the port area’s operations will assist members of the public in using the facilities, Tang added.
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As of Friday noon, over 160,000 residents have registered for the e-channel service since its application began on Tuesday, Jacky Wong, assistant director (Control) of the Immigration Department, said at a joint press conference following Tang’s media briefing.
Wong said he believes the number will grow after Monday with enhanced promotion.
Timothy Chui Ting-pong, executive director of the Hong Kong Tourism Association, expects a growing number of Hong Kong tour groups to transit through the Huanggang Port within six to nine months of its opening.
Speaking to local media, he revealed that several travel agencies are planning to route tour groups through the port into Shenzhen on Monday, its opening day.
Advising travelers to wait a week or two to allow operations to settle down, Chui said his own travel agency will send its first tour group through the port at the end of the month.
Contact the writer at stacyshi@chinadailyhk.com
