High-speed sleeper trains will run overnight between Hong Kong and Beijing as well as Shanghai from June 15 in a new measure the city’s leader has said will further boost integration with mainland China.
With high-speed trains departing from Hong Kong’s West Kowloon terminus, it will only take around 12½ hours to get to Beijing West station and 11 hours and 14 minutes to Shanghai Hongqiao station.
The overnight trains, running from Friday to Monday, will have sleeping facilities.
The Beijing-bound train will depart at 6.24pm each day from Hong Kong and arrive in the capital at 6.53am the next day, while the service to Shanghai will leave at 7.49pm, arriving there at 6.45am the following morning. Return trains will also run.
Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu welcomed the new arrangement and expressed gratitude to the central government and China Railway for their “care”.
“It has significant meaning in fostering the people-to-people, business-to-business exchanges and the integration between Hong Kong and the mainland.”
Lee also said he had tasked the Logistic and Transport Bureau as well as the MTR Corporation to implement the new measures well.