China Railway Guangzhou Group and Hong Kong railway departments recently agreed to launch a new cross-boundary transportation project as part of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong high-speed railway. This “flexible travel” scheme, as it is otherwise known, will start Aug 14 and make it more convenient for people to travel between Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Passengers with a valid ticket issued between Futian Station in Shenzhen and Hong Kong West Kowloon Station can apply for up to three ticket changes through the “flexible travel” project, either after they have changed tickets once or once the change period has expired. No handling fee will be charged for the additional changes.

Railway department statistics show that more than 180 trains a day shuttle between Shenzhen and Hong Kong West Kowloon Station. From Jan 15 to Aug 6 this year, the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong high-speed rail has seen 8.087 million cross-border passengers, an average of 40,000 passengers per day.

Experts say that the new project will provide passengers with more options to plan their itinerary and will contribute to the formation of the area’s “two-city quality life circle.”

Zhang Yuxiu, director of the Futian Station, said, “At present, we are stepping up the optimization and upgrading of the ticket system to meet the needs of the "flexible travel" project. At the same time, training, rules, and regulations are also being carried out to ensure that the station staff are familiar with the new business model.”