December 20, 2023
HONG KONG – Around 9.03 million passengers will pass through Hong Kong’s sea, land and air control points during the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays, the Immigration Department said Tuesday.
The department said in a statement that among these passengers (including Hong Kong residents and visitors), around 7.54 million will pass through the special administrative region’s land boundary control points from Dec 22 to 26 and from Dec 29 to Jan 1.
The number of outbound passengers and inbound passengers using land boundary control points will be relatively higher on Dec 23 and Dec 26, with around 549,000 passengers and 626,000 passengers respectively
The number of outbound passengers and inbound passengers using land boundary control points will be relatively higher on Dec 23 and Dec 26, with around 549,000 passengers and 626,000 passengers respectively, it added.
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The department estimated that Lo Wu will be the busiest control point, with a daily average of about 217,000 passengers passing through it during the holidays.
Also, the passenger traffic at the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line and Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Control Point will be heavy, with a daily average of about 184,000 and 118,000 passengers, respectively, the department said.
To cope with the anticipated heavy traffic during the holiday period, the department has minimized leave for frontline officers for flexible deployment and operation of extra clearance counters and kiosks. Additional security guards will also be deployed to provide crowd management support.
For travelers going to the Chinese mainland, the department reminded them to carry their proof of identity and valid travel documents for crossing the boundary.
About 700 e-Channels have been installed at various control points and Hong Kong residents enrolled for the Express e-Channel should re-enrol if they have been issued with a new identity card, the department added.