Han Ximin

1824295095@qq.com

STARTING from tomorrow, the first day of the Qingming Festival holiday, the interval between trains on Metro Line 4 will be reduced to 4 minutes during weekends and holidays to provide fast and convenient services for riders, HKMTR Shenzhen announced Monday.

The addition of 12 trains between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. will reduce departure intervals and increase capacity by 15%, accommodating an additional 44,000 passenger trips weekly, according to the operator.

During the upcoming holiday, and based on historical records, peak passenger influxes are expected at Futian Station between 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., and between 1 p.m. and 4 p.m., at Children’s Palace Station between 2 p.m. and 5 p.m., and at Shenzhen North Station between 1 p.m. and 9 p.m. Travelers are advised to stagger their travel hours to help alleviate congestion.

To handle the anticipated peak, the operator will extend service by 90 minutes today and Friday. The final trains departing Niuhu Station and Futian Checkpoint are scheduled at 12:30 a.m. and 12:41 a.m. respectively. Departures from Shenzhen North Station will continue until 1:02 a.m.

Between March 28 and Sunday, a significant increase in travelers between Shenzhen and Hong Kong is anticipated due to public holidays in Hong Kong and the Qingming Festival.

Futian is the first stop for Hong Kong visitors. Businesses in the district’s CBD area have launched various activities covering the Qingming Festival and extending into May and June, offering promotional packages and services for Hong Kong visitors. Data from the Futian District Industry and Information Technology Bureau reveal that visits to 10 shopping complexes exceeded 2 million over the previous Friday and Saturday.

To facilitate border crossing, train operators have scheduled additional services from Futian Station to West Kowloon Station, with over 100 pairs of trains operating daily between Thursday and the coming Saturday. The Futian District Government, in collaboration with the Shenzhen Municipal Transport Bureau and the Shenzhen Bus Group, has introduced four free shuttle bus lines linking Futian Checkpoint with business districts, operating from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.