Hong Kong's rail operator told residents on Friday that travel times are expected to be longer as hundreds of thousands of people cross the border into mainland China on the first day of the Easter holidays.
As of 10am, at least 227,538 Hong Kong residents had left Hong Kong across all border points, and 17,653 people had entered the country, according to Immigration Bureau statistics.
Long lines were seen throughout the morning at various land checkpoints, including Luohu Station and the terminus of the West Kowloon High Speed ​​Rail.
MTR Corporation announced Friday that it has deployed additional personnel to deal with the surge in passenger numbers.
“Due to the peak travel period, large crowds are currently crossing the Luohu-Lokma Chau border,” the railway operator said.
“Additional staff have been deployed to East Railway stations to assist passengers. Passengers are advised to allow sufficient time for their journey and consider using other control points to cross the border. It is recommended.”
MTR Corp earlier announced plans to ramp up service on most routes throughout the holiday period, with 300 additional trains scheduled to meet demand.
The Ministry of Transport issued two similar warnings just after 10 a.m. Friday, as a surge in traffic caused delays for motorists trying to cross Shenzhen Bay and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge.
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The Immigration Bureau previously estimated that tourists and residents would make 11 million round trips over the weekend and Qingming Festival.
Easter Sunday falls on March 31st, while the traditional Chinese grave-sweeping day to honor ancestors takes place on April 4th.
Easter is not a public holiday on the mainland.
The ministry predicted heavy traffic congestion at land crossings during the period, with approximately 207,000 people using the Luohu checkpoint each day, 169,000 people using the Lok Ma Chau branch line, and 143,000 people using the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge. .
