Greater Bay Area rail passenger flows surge

The number of cross-border passengers transported by the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong High-Speed Railway witnessed a dramatic increase in the first half of this year, reflecting the increasingly close interactions among individuals and the flourishing economic integration in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

The 141-kilometer railway line transported 15.03 million cross-border passengers from January to June, marking a year-on-year growth of 16.1 percent, according to data from the China Railway Guangzhou Group.

The railway line showed a robust trend of synchronized growth in inbound and outbound passenger flows, according to the railway group.

The number of passengers traveling from the West Kowloon station in Hong Kong to the Chinese mainland reached 7.36 million in the first half of the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 15.1 percent.

Meanwhile, 7.67 million passengers traveled from the Chinese mainland to Hong Kong from January to June, showing a growth of 17.1 percent compared to the same period of last year.

The dual-directional growth trend highlights the high-speed railway's role in promoting connectivity and development within the Greater Bay Area, the railway group said.

Public holidays and large-scale performances and events have greatly helped boost traffic flows along the railway line, with the daily cross-border passenger numbers exceeding 100,000 during Spring Festival and Qingming Festival.

On January 31, the fourth day of the Spring Festival holiday, the number of cross-border passengers transported by the railway line reached 136,000, a record high.