Coronavirus: time slots for travel from Hong Kong to mainland China ahead of Lunar New Year almost fully booked
- More than 340,000 had registered for visits to mainland by 6pm on Friday, government says
- From Sunday, 50,000 travellers a day from Hong Kong will be allowed to use land checkpoints at four crossings after reserving a spot online
Time slots for cross-border travel on the days leading up to Lunar New Year were almost fully booked by Friday as the Hong Kong government revealed that more than 340,000 residents had registered for visits to mainland China by 6pm.
Tens of thousands of residents flocked to a new online booking platform to register hours after the city’s leader on Thursday announced details of border-crossing arrangements for Sunday.
Prospective travellers must show proof of a negative Covid-19 test taken within 48 hours of arrival, and in anticipation of making the journey, residents queued up at community centres in North district, Causeway Bay and Central, among other areas, for screening.
Among about 140 people queuing up for the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test at Edinburgh Place in Central was Jacky Ho, 32, an insurance company executive, who planned to go to Shanghai for a business trip on Sunday.
“We had a lot of Zoom meetings when the border was closed and sometimes it may not work as efficiently as a face-to-face meeting,” Ho said. “I think opening the border will give a giant boost to the economy and will make it more convenient for business travellers like me.”
Health officials on Friday reported 19,722 cases, including 195 imported ones. A total of 55 deaths were also recorded, taking the total to 12,204. The city’s Covid-19 infection tally stood at 2,739,977.