All you need to know about the Hong Kong-mainland rail link, co-located checkpoints and law enforcement issues
Time is running out for both governments to agree on a plan that satisfies the Basic Law and “one country two systems”
Hong Kong’s justice secretary Rimsky Yuen Kwok-keung and transport chief Anthony Cheung Bing-leung will head to Beijing on Monday to discuss the high-speed rail link to Guangzhou with mainland authorities.
The discussions are widely believed to revolve around co-location arrangements, a thorny issue that continues to fuel debate and is yet to be worked out. Here’s what it all means.
What is the co-location arrangement?
The co-location of customs, immigration and quarantine (CIQ) facilities at the West Kowloon terminus would see passengers complete clearance procedures of Hong Kong and mainland authorities both prior to boarding and after disembarking the train.
For mainland-bound travellers, this would allow passengers to disembark the train at any station on the mainland’s rail network without having to go through clearance processes. Without a co-location arrangement at the West Kowloon terminus, passengers would be required to complete clearance procedures after reaching their destination, thus greatly reducing the efficiency and convenience of the high-speed rail link.
Location of West Kowloon terminus
