New routes to link ZAPE, Border Gate, Barra

The government will open new bus routes to connect Barra with ZAPE and borders with Zhuhai respectively.

This was revealed following a recent Transport Advisory Committee meeting, local media has reported.

One plan is to open route No 61, an express route, although without the “X” sign, which will run between the Barra transport hub and the Border Gate checkpoint.

Both bus companies will operate this planned route. It will run between the Inner Harbour and Far Chi Kei.

Two existing bus routes will be rebranded and rerouted to deal with the changing situation.

The existing route No 10A will be renamed as No 60. The updated route will skip Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro – San Ma Lo – and connect Barra with ZAPE. It will also become a cyclical route with the Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal as its terminus.

Route No 5AX will be renamed to No 65, which will skip Avenida do Doutor Rodrigo Rodrigues on the way to Barra. Instead, it will take ZAPE District. While on the way to Border Gate, the renamed route will take Avenida do Ouvidor Arriaga. The terminus station will be relocated to Rua dos Currais.

The Transport Bureau (DSAT) said the changes are aimed at taking less congested routes, to increase the turnover rate of these routes. The existing routes are usually not very full, so impacts on existing passengers should not be significant. It suggested passengers take routes 3A and 10 to substitute for the altered route 10A, as well as routes 1, 3 and 3X for 5AX.

Should there be a strong need for more frequent departures, the bureau pledged that corresponding coordination will be conducted.

The meeting also covered the Inner Harbour flood-relief road works and the digitization of vehicle drivers’ health certificates.