Vehicles depart for Hong Kong at the Heung Yuen Wai/Liantang Control Point at the Hong Kong-Shenzhen boundary on Feb 6, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)
About 28 percent of the 1,600 Hong Kong private car owners selected by ballot to become the first to apply to be able to drive between the special administrative region and Guangdong province under the Northbound Travel for Hong Kong Vehicles program were not able to submit their applications before the deadline.
The applicants, who were selected by computer ballot from more than 16,000 registrants, were required to submit their applications in batches before June 10.
Once approved, they are issued with a Closed Road Permit which costs HK$540 ($69) per year and a Chinese mainland electronic vehicle license, with which they will be allowed to travel with their eligible vehicles between Hong Kong and Guangdong via Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge starting from July 1.
The Transport Department of the HKSAR government said it would not extend the submission deadline for the 442 private car owners who were unable to submit their applications in time
The Transport Department of the HKSAR government said it would not extend the submission deadline for the 442 private car owners who were unable to submit their applications in time.
Ringo Lee Yiu-pui, president of Hong Kong Automobile Association, said applicants have encountered difficulties in the application process which have led to unsuccessful submission.
They were required to submit a great deal of information on the application form, including the personal information of the car owner, license plate, Hong Kong driving license, mainland driving license, mainland phone number, etc, he said, citing drivers.
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Although Hong Kong residents with local driving licenses are qualified to obtain a mainland license without examination, the application procedure is “not that easy”, given the daily quotas for such applications, Lee noted. Applicants need to compete for a place on the quota and wait for some time to get their mainland driving license.
Although Hong Kong residents with local driving licenses are qualified to obtain a mainland license without examination, the application procedure is “not that easy”, given the daily quotas for such applications, said Ringo Lee Yiu-pui, president of Hong Kong Automobile Association
But according to requirements of the Transport Department, applicants must submit their applications within 72 hours of receiving the notification.
As a result, their applications had expired by the time they obtained their mainland driving license, Lee said.
The amount of information needed to complete the application, and the need to list a mainland phone number, also presented obstacles for Hong Kong private car owners, he added.
He suggested that car owners or drivers make sure that they have all the necessary qualifications and documents in order before taking part in the ballot. The Transport Department should also consider extending the time limit for applications, he said.
READ MORE: Guangdong relaxes cross-boudnary car criteria
Hong Kong Lawmaker Chan Pui-leung suggested introducing a replacement mechanism to deal with the current situation. The government could also ask registrants to provide all information and their mainland driving license and pay a deposit before the lottery, he added.
