THE government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) announced Aug. 23 that the Hong Kong section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link (XRL) would open Sept. 23 to connect with the national high-speed rail network, offering direct trains to 44 destinations. The Hong Kong section connects Futian Station with West Kowloon Station in Hong Kong.The first train from Futian Station to West Kowloon Station starts at 8:15 a.m. and the last train starts at 9:19 p.m. The first train from West Kowloon Station to Futian Station runs at 8:12 a.m. and the last train runs at 8:23 p.m.The interval between each train is about 10 to 20 minutes. Secretary for Transport and Housing of the HKSAR Government Frank Chan Fan said that the first train would depart Sept. 23, from Hong Kong West Kowloon Station to Shenzhen North Station, with the price of the second-class fare at HK$86. The fare is HK$80 between Futian and West Kowloon. Chan said that direct services to 44 Chinese mainland destinations would be on offer, among which six will be for short haul destinations such as Shenzhen North, Guangzhou South and four other stations, and 38 to places further afield, namely Beijing, Shanghai, Wuhan and an other 35 stations. Ticket sales for travelers from Hong Kong to the mainland through the XRL will start Sept. 10. Travelers can purchase tickets to destinations at 23 counters in West Kowloon Station via various payment methods, such as Octopus, Alipay and WeChat Pay, MTR Operation Director Lau Tin-shing said. Passengers can print their tickets at machines with travel permits for Hong Kong and Macao residents as well as second-generation mainland resident IDs. No more than 10 tickets can be bought at a time. Speaking to media at an open day, Lau said that the working teams are still discussing the arrangements for online ticket booking. The route has nine stations, and trips from Kowloon to the Futian Station and Shenzhen North Railway Station will be shortened to 14 minutes and 23 minutes, respectively. During the initial stage, a total of 127 pairs of trains, including 13 trains to 15 major Chinese cities, including Beijing, Shanghai, Kunming and Guilin, will be put into operation. Tickets will be priced at HK$80, HK$90, HK$210 and HK$260 to travel from Hong Kong to the Futian Station, Shenzhen North, Dongguan’s Humen Railway Station, and Guangzhou South Railway Station, respectively. The 26-kilometer section connects Hong Kong to the national high-speed rail network. (Han Ximin) | 