With festival travel rebounding, MTR Corporation has quietly upgraded its holiday timetable. A “Festive Travel Tips” update on 26 September confirms that 13 pairs of additional short-haul trains between West Kowloon and Futian, plus two extra pairs to Shenzhenbei, will run from 25 September through 4 October. The capacity boost raises the West Kowloon–Futian corridor to more than 90 departures per day at peak, trimming the theoretical headway to under 10 minutes. Ticket sales on the 12306 platform opened earlier this week and many evening slots for 29 September are already waitlisted, according to travel agents. MTR is also extending its same-day Flexi-trip Arrangement, allowing passengers three last-minute online changes on the day of travel—a feature welcomed by business travellers juggling meetings on both sides of the border. For overnight journeys, an extra pair of Beijing sleeper trains will operate every Tuesday to Thursday until 8 October, providing daily north-bound departures. Corporate mobility coordinators should note that West Kowloon station imposes a 30-minute cut-off for immigration processing and recommends arriving 90 minutes before departure during peak periods. Passport holders and travellers requiring on-arrival visas should budget even more time, as they cannot use the automated “collaborative inspection” e-gates.
Source: MTR Corporation
