Massive holiday crowds swamped the revamped Huanggang Port on Sunday during its first real test over the festival long weekend, with some travellers reporting two-hour waits.
Outbound passenger traffic was “exceptionally heavy” between 10am and 2pm, with more than 30,000 departures, according to the Immigration Department. The surge prompted officers to open all inspection counters and implement a tidal flow system to control crowds and ease congestion.
The Hong Kong Security Bureau issued the “busy” advisory for Huanggang on its “Easy Boundary” portal at about 1.45pm, telling departing travellers to expect wait times of up to 45 minutes for clearance. The status was back to “normal” by 3.30pm.
In contrast, the status of operations of the seven other land crossings, including Lo Wu, Lok Ma Chau Spur Line and Shenzhen Bay, remained “normal” throughout the morning and early afternoon, with clearance times as short as five minutes.