CITYBUS hopes to have buses running from Admiralty to Guangzhou within five weeks, the firm's general manager said yesterday.
Belinda Ma Chee-wan said Citybus was sending staff to the provincial capital this week to check which roads would give the firm's double-deck coaches an obstacle free run.
''We are looking towards the end of September for the service to start,'' she said. ''It is just a question of selecting the terminal point and getting the Guangzhou authority's permission. We are processing that now.'' Citybus was still undecided whether to run its buses into the heart of the city, Ms Ma said. ''From the marketing point of view that is the most attractive, but I have to balance the marketing and the operational side.
''We have tested a few routes and each time when we left the Superhighway it took another 30 to 45 minutes to the terminal because the traffic was so heavy.'' Ms Ma said tickets would be $188 during an initial promotional period, with the 94-seater coaches travelling from Admiralty via China Hong Kong City and Sha Tin City One to the Lok Ma Chau border crossing and then on the Superhighway to Guangzhou.
''The trip should take around 31/2 hours including processing time at the border,'' Ms Ma said. ''From the border to Guangzhou it takes only one hour 45 minutes.'' However, red tape means that at first passengers will not be able to travel in luxury. Citybus has single-deck coaches with videos, a bar and a toilet installed, but it does not yet have a cross-border licence for them.
Ms Ma said the licensing would take several months. Citybus also intended to order double-deck coaches with the same features.
