Airport check-in service opened at Hong Kong end of newly opened Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge

An airport check-in service has been set up at the Hong Kong Port of the newly opened Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge to make life easier for inbound passengers taking onward flights at Hong Kong International Airport.

Four check-in counters and another four self-service check-in kiosks for four airlines – Cathay Pacific Airways, Cathay Dragon, Hong Kong Airlines and HK Express – are now available in the arrivals hall of the passenger clearance building for airline passengers to check their baggage and obtain boarding passes.

The service is similar to one already offered to airline passengers at Airport Express train stations in Hong Kong.

Transport stakeholders expect the bridge – the world’s longest sea crossing – which opened on Wednesday, to lead to an increase in passengers travelling to and from cities throughout the Pearl River Delta region and beyond.

As of 8pm on Thursday, the bridge’s second day of operation, some 1,595 vehicular trips were made on the link, of which 747 were Hong Kong-bound while 848 were to Zhuhai or Macau.

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Announcing the new service on Thursday, Steven Yiu Siu-chung, Hong Kong Airport Authority’s (HKAA) deputy director of service delivery, said the new check-in services at the Hong Kong Port of the crossing would provide greater convenience for bridge commuters who are travelling by air to other destinations. The Hong Kong Port is located on the artificial island next to the airport at Chek Lap Kok.

The service centre is open from 7am to 10.30pm and passengers need to check in at least two and a half hours ahead of their scheduled flights.

Yiu said HKAA has also set up a check-in service at the bridge’s Zhuhai Port for Hong Kong-bound passengers to check in and obtain boarding passes before going on to Hong Kong International Airport via the mega bridge.

However, at the Zhuhai facility, there is no luggage transfer service. Passengers who check in at the Zhuhai Port can choose to offload their baggage at the Hong Kong Port after they go through customs.

The same service will be available at the Macau Port from early next year.

“After checking in at the Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities, passengers may then go to Hong Kong International Airport or elsewhere at their leisure without the hassle of having to carry luggage around,” Yiu said.

“They collect their checked baggage at their final flight destination,” he added.

Yiu said more airlines might later join in offering the check-in service at the bridge but the four airlines currently participating already account for 50 per cent of air passengers at Hong Kong airport.

A Zhuhai passenger surnamed Guo who had travelled via the bridge to Hong Kong for a flight to the Maldives, said she would like to use the check-in service but could not make the two-and-a-half-hour cut-off time.

She was nonetheless impressed with the service.

“This service provides convenience for travellers like me who will take a flight after coming to Hong Kong via the bridge. I will use it next time since I can offload my luggage here,” she said.

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Taking a cross-border coach to travel to Hong Kong, Guo also complained about the lack of luggage trolleys provided at the Hong Kong boundary crossing facilities. “I need to carry three pieces of luggage with my family. This is not easy. Why aren’t any luggage trolleys provided here like at the airport?” she asked.