The Hong Kong Section of the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link will offer cross-provincial train services directly to Beijing, Changsha, Hangzhou, Shanghai, Wuhan and other cities starting from April 1 and add five new stops.

Thursday is the first day of ticket sales for newly added cross-provincial high-speed trains. The ticket hall of Hong Kong's West Kowloon Station was crowded with passengers, and a long queue was in front of self-service ticket purchasing machines. Some passengers said the reopening of the cross-provincial high-speed trains in three years would make it easier for them to reunite with their family members on the mainland after a long absence due to the COVID-19.

Five new stations include Changping Station in Guangdong Province, Huizhou North Station in Guangdong Province, Heyuan East Station in Guangdong Province, Ganzhou West Station in Jiangxi Province, and Shengfang Station in Hebei Province, expanding the network's coverage to 66 stations across the country, according to Mass Transit Railway (MTR) in Hong Kong. By then, the number of daily trains will increase from 102 to 164, roughly returning to pre-pandemic levels.