චීනයේ ප්‍රධාන භූමිය - හොංකො යා කරන අධිවේගී රාත්‍රී දුම්රියක්

High-speed sleeper train service launches between mainland, Hong Kong

High-speed sleeper trains linking Beijing and Shanghai with Hong Kong began operating on Saturday.

Excited and visibly satisfied with the new train line which will facilitate exchanges between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong, many passengers arrived at the station earlier to ensure they could complete all formalities on time.

At the West Kowloon Railway Station, the first two high-speed trains to Beijing West Station and Shanghai Hongqiao Station departed at 18:24 and 19:49. At 17:30, many passengers on the first sleeper train to Beijing went through the last inspection procedures and came to the arrival hall to wait for a ticket check.

"I want to hurry up because I don't know how early I should be there as this is my first time," said Lok, a passenger.

"I am excited, so I prepared well in advance. Also, my luggage is very heavy, so I can take my time and walk a little slower," another passenger, who gave his name as Chow, said.

"Passengers are required to go through the 'co-location' immigration procedures. Today, 381 passengers departing from West Kowloon Station on the overnight trains purchased sleeper tickets, and eight passengers bought second-class tickets. We fully grasp data such as the pre-sale number of daily passenger tickets, train departure place, passenger document type, and other data. Relying on intelligent passenger flow prediction and the system to channel the crowds, we open all inspection channels to ensure smooth clearance of passengers, " said Wan Kwun-nam, deputy team leader of Duty Team Four at the West Kowloon Border Checkpoint.

Tickets for the first sleeper train went on sale on June 5, and all tickets have already been sold out. The sleeper trains have two second-class carriages, 13 sleeper carriages, and one dining carriage. Each compartment has four beds.

"I can sleep one night on the train, so I can get to Beijing very comfortably," Wong Wai-kei, a passenger from Hong Kong, said.

"This is the headsign for the previous direct train to Kowloon. I took that train more than ten years ago, so I think that taking this high-speed sleeper train today is very meaningful, " another passenger from Hong Kong, Wong Chi-chiu, said, displaying the headsign.

The new train service runs between Hong Kong's West Kowloon Station and Beijing West Railway Station from Friday to Monday. Travel time between Beijing and Hong Kong will be reduced to about 12.5 hours from 24.5 hours.

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