Hong Kong, Oct 01: An estimated 3.4 million people are expected to cross the HK land checkpoints to and from the Chinese mainland during the coming National Day holidays.

A spokesman for the Hong Kong Immigration Department said that the peak period of cross-boundary traffic during the National Day holidays will fall between October 1 and Octoctober 7, 2003, reported a leading travel portal. It is estimated about 2.4 million passengers (daily average of 302,000) will cross the boundary via Lo Wu checkpoint. It represents an increase of 17.1 percent when compared with the corresponding period of last year, the portal said in its report.
During the festive period, the number of departing passengers at Lo Wu may reach a peak of 230,000 on October 4 while the peak of arrivals will be on Oct. 5 with 220,000 people returning to Hong Kong. The highest daily traffic is expected to reach 370,000 on October 4, 2003.
The passenger traffic at Lok Ma Chau checkpoint during the festive period will also be very heavy with a forecast of 719,000 passengers (daily average of 90,000). The peak of departures is expected to fall on October 4 with about 54,000 people departing for Shenzhen, and the arrival peak will be on October 5 with about 56,000 people returning to Hong Kong.
Bureau Report