The proposed policy allowing southbound travel for Guangdong cars via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB) is expected to be launched this year, starting with Hong Kong – and in a recent interview with the Post, Kevin Ho King Lun, chairman of The Industry and Commerce Association of Macau, said that the policy would “positively impact” Macau’s economy, describing it as a “good phenomenon with a reversal of the [economic downward] trend” for the city.
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Transport and Logistics, Mabel Chan, noted in a blog posted on Saturday that preparations are underway for the launch of southbound travel for Guangdong vehicles this year. According to the “Administrative Measures for Guangdong Vehicles Entering and Leaving the Automated Carparks at the Hong Kong side of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge Zhuhai Checkpoint”, released by the Department of Transport of Guangdong Province, cars approved to enter and exit the carparks via the Zhuhai checkpoint of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge will be prohibited from entering the urban areas of Hong Kong during the initial phase of the scheme, and they must return on the original route upon leaving Hong Kong. The application system for Guangdong vehicles will open in batches, and successful applicants must leave Hong Kong and return to the mainland within six months of entry.
In a WeChat conversation with the Post last week, Ho underlined that the “southbound travel for Guangdong cars” would represent a positive reversal for Macau’s struggling economy, adding he believed that once the relevant policy was implemented in Macau, it would strengthen exchanges between Macau and the rest of the country, particularly within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Greater Bay Area (GBA), and further promote the integration of Macau residents into the Greater Bay Area.
Ho is a prominent businessman, school principal and local deputy to the National People’s Congress (NPC).
Regarding the view by some in civil society that the implementation of the “Macau cars going north” policy had negatively impacted local small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and reduced local spending power, Ho said “this is not the case”, adding that many locals choose to go to the mainland not only for the prices but also for the diverse range of goods available there. On the contrary, he said, many mainland tourists visit Macau and spend generously because of the “unique” travel experience it offers them.
Ho emphasised that the public should not always attribute economic issues to policy changes, adding he believed that the southward movement of Guangdong vehicles would effectively further increase the flow of tourists to Macau: “We currently have a daily quota of 2,000 vehicles travelling from Macau to Zhuhai, and each vehicle can carry an average of four to five people, allowing for a maximum of 10,000 people daily. However, there is an average of 100,000 mainland visitors in Macau each day”.
He went on to say that in the future, the “southbound travel for Guangdong vehicles” policy was expected to complement Zhuhai’s “one-week-one-visit” policy for travelling to Macau as well as the “one-permit-multiple-visits” policy introduced by the Guangdong-Macau In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, to further drive the development of Macau’s economy: “If we can provide 1,000 quotas per day for entry into the urban area and there are no quota restrictions for the carparks at the Macau side of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge checkpoint, this would have a positive impact on the economy”. Ho also said he believed that the initiative would be effective in boosting the economy of Macau’s entire community, not just its tourist attractions.
While bridging the gap of Macau’s consumption outflow, Ho said he agrees that any traffic pressure on Macau after the launch of the southbound travel for Guangdong cars could be reduced by “scientifically” setting a daily quota on the number of vehicles from the neighbouring province entering Macau and making “reasonable” use of the large carparks at the Macau side of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge checkpoint.
This file photo taken on March 3 shows Kevin Ho King Lun, chairman of The Industry and Commerce Association of Macau, posing at the local airport after talking to journalists before departing for Beijing to attend this year’s plenary session of the National People’s Congress (NPC).– Photo: Yuki Lei
