At a briefing late on 24 September, the Zhongshan Border-Inspection Station under the Zhuhai General Command forecast that more than 18,000 people will transit the Zhongshan Passenger Port between 25 and 27 September, with a daily peak exceeding 2,000. The port connects directly to Hong Kong and Macau by high-speed catamaran and is a popular choice for business travellers heading to the Pearl River Delta. To accommodate the rush, inspection halls have been re-zoned into express, regular and family channels, and the authority will trial facial-recognition boarding for Hong Kong permanent-resident card holders. Extra ferries have been chartered for the evening of 27 September to absorb returning traffic. The station cautions passengers to keep an eye on ferry schedules, which may change with Typhoon Maysak lingering off the coast. Corporations based in Zhongshan’s manufacturing parks are advised to issue travel attestations in advance; random checks on purpose-of-visit documentation have been stepped up after several visa overstay cases last month. With the Hong Kong-Zhongshan Bridge slated to open next year, the passenger port is keen to showcase its efficiency. The upcoming surge is viewed internally as a stress test for new biometric systems that will later migrate to the bridge’s land checkpoint.
Source: Economic Observer
