24 hour border crossing for mainland TNRs under consideration

The Macau delegate of the Chinese National People’s Congress, Liu Yiliang, confirmed to TDM yesterday that the mainland authorities are considering opening the border checkpoint at the Zhuhai-Macau Cross Border Industrial Zone to mainland non-resident workers between midnight and 7 a.m. However, he claimed that the proposal involved altering the function of the zone, which would require the approval of the central government.
Mr Liu revealed that the mainland authorities have suggested the idea in the past. However, the sheer numbers of non-resident workers who travel to Macau and the frequency with which they cross the border have led the officials to question whether the industrial zone is capable of handling the change.
Since he believes that the idea proposed by mainland authorities may create conflict by denying the same privilege to Macau residents, Mr Liu has made a counter-proposition: that the industrial zone should be open to both Macau residents and non-residents.
Liu Yiliang said that if the zone is to handle residents and non-residents, its border checkpoint has to be expanded and upgraded in order to ensure that investors and workers in the industrial zone can be prioritized when crossing the border.
Moreover, since the checkpoint in the industrial zone is for some specific purposes only, any change in its function requires approval from the central government. Security and transportation are further issues that the mainland authorities have to consider.
The president of the Zhuhai-Macau Cross Border Industrial Zone Chamber of Commerce, Chan Wai Chi, first mentioned the possibility of after-hours border crossing in the TDM Forum on Sunday. He added that the public has to be consulted before the policy is implemented. JPL