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No offices, no burgers, no trucks

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Shenzhen officials worried about the lack of use of a new border crossing for vehicles have met truck drivers to discuss ways of improving traffic flow just a month after the opening of the Western Corridor checkpoint.

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The chairman of the Lok Ma Chau-Hong Kong Freight Association, Chiang Chi-wai, met officials of the Shenzhen control point on Thursday.

He said he had told the office's director that the lack of supplementary infrastructure was one of the reasons truck drivers were shunning the new facilities.

'There is no office space reserved for transportation companies, which is useful to smoothing goods inspection procedures, not to mention the fact that there isn't even a place for a drink and a burger,' he said.

A new link, the Yanjiang Highway, which is expected to open in 2009, will provide a direct link to connect the corridor to major cities in the west of the mainland. Until then, trucks need to use the highly congested Yueliangwan Bridge before heading north.

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'If the bridge is not packed, crossing through the new checkpoint can, in fact, cut travel time by at least 15 minutes for cargo now going to Shenzhen west via Lok Ma Chau,' Mr Chiang said. 'But a traffic jam can sometimes cost you up to 45 minutes.'

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