Hong Kong Business News

Deputy Chief Secretary Cheuk Wing-hing convened the second interdepartmental meeting on improving the transportation arrangements for cruise passengers arriving at Kai Tak Cruise Terminal (KTCT).

Having reviewed the facilitative measures taken during three recent ship calls, the Government and related parties formulated an action plan for the revisit of the Spectrum of the Seas, a cruise ship carrying 4,500 tourists, at KTCT on August 19.

Around 1,100 passengers will participate in shore excursions, while the remaining 3,400 will visit sightseeing spots, making use of the city’s public transportation.

Over the past week, the Tourism Commission, the Tourism Board and the KTCT operator have been in close contact with the cruise line to jointly set out transportation arrangements for disembarking passengers.

At the Tourism Commission’s request, the cruise line will provide passengers with local transportation information and stagger their disembarkation. Furthermore, the cruise line will gauge passengers’ preferences on mode of transport in advance in order to help the terminal operator get prepared with the aid of government departments.

As Spectrum of the Seas berths on Saturday, a number of transportation arrangements will be made.

(1) Public bus special route 22R to the Kai Tak MTR Station will operate, and additional staffing and wayfinding will be provided to assist passengers at the station. Two other special routes, 20R to Tsim Sha Tsui and 25R to the Kwun Tong MTR Station, will be introduced specifically for this ship call.

(2) Three free shuttle bus routes will run with increased frequency. The routing to the Admiralty MTR Station and Garden Road Peak Tram Lower Terminus, as well as that to Mong Kok, will remain unchanged. However, owing to the commencement of special bus route 20R to Tsim Sha Tsui, the shuttle bus originally to Tsim Sha Tsui will only stop at the West Kowloon Cultural District and the Kowloon MTR Station.

(3) For the taxi trade, prior notifications and real-time information will be disseminated through an instant messaging platform, while radio channels will ensure enhanced broadcasting of information. Additionally, $50 liquefied petroleum gas cash coupons will be given to taxi drivers picking up passengers at KTCT.

Separately, for the three calls of the Resorts World One today, on Friday and Sunday, apart from adjusting the schedules of special bus route 22R and the three free shuttle bus routes according to demand, transportation services will by and large remain unchanged to allow the Government to monitor the situation to ensure smooth disembarkation arrangements.