BEIJING: Since opening in June last year, passenger flows along the first high-speed train linking the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the western area of Hunan province have significantly increased, according to railway operators.
The train G6080 departs each morning from West Kowloon Station in Hong Kong and arrives at the Zhangjiajie West Station in Hunan, after a swift journey of six hours and 22 minutes.
The railway line, known as the mountain-water economic artery, has thus far transported over 500,000 passengers, with a peak daily ridership of 2,932, according to China Railway Guangzhou Group.
The train is the first major transportation artery connecting the Greater Bay Area with the western part of Hunan. Its operation has added a new chapter to regional coordinated development, according to the railway group.
The train travels north along the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong High-Speed Railway and Beijing-Guangzhou High-Speed Railway arteries, passing dozens of scenic spots in the western area of Hunan.
The number of Hong Kong tourists traveling to western Hunan has increased by 57 percent, while tourists traveling through the high-speed route to Hong Kong to shop and study account for 23 percent of the cross-border passenger flow, according to data from the railway company. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
