The mega Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) has seen steady growth in crossings by motor vehicles bearing Hong Kong license plates since the "northbound travel for Hong Kong vehicles" scheme was introduced two years ago, according to the latest data released by border inspection authorities.
The "northbound travel for Hong Kong vehicles" scheme went into effect on July 1, 2023, marking a crucial step towards stronger connectivity and integrated development within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) city cluster in south China. The scheme allows eligible Hong Kong private cars to travel between Hong Kong and neighboring Guangdong Province via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge without the need to obtain regular quotas.
As of Saturday, the number of crossings by Hong Kong-registered motor vehicles in 2025 had already surpassed one million, reaching this milestone 72 days earlier than in 2024, according to data from the HZMB inspection station.
Over the past two years since the entry into effect of the "northbound travel for Hong Kong vehicles" scheme, over 2.85 million crossings have been made by single-license plate vehicles from Hong Kong through the HZMB.
During the two years, the scheme has boosted stronger connectivity and integrated development within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Over 108,000 Hong Kong vehicles and more than 129,000 Hong Kong drivers have registered for "northbound travel".
The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge officially opened to traffic earlier on October 24, 2018, after nearly 10 years of construction since Dec. 15, 2009.
The 55-kilometer-long bridge, the world's longest sea-crossing bridge, is the first ever mega cooperation project between the three places within the framework of "one country, two systems" principle.
The entire HKZM Bridge contains a 22.9-kilometer-long bridge part and a 6.7-kilometer-long undersea tunnel which connects two artificial islands. It slashes the travel time between Hong Kong and Zhuhai from three hours to just 30 minutes, further integrating the cities in the Pearl River Delta.
Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge sees steady growth in crossings by Hong Kong vehicles
Representatives of 12 Japanese civil groups held a rally in Tokyo on Thursday, urging the government to ban all arms exports.
The demonstrators gathered in front of the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters and the National Diet building, where they submitted a formal petition. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner, the Japan Innovation Party, agreed at a meeting on Monday to revise the implementation guidelines of the Three Principles on Transfer of Defense Equipment and Technology and lift restrictions that limit defense equipment transfers to five noncombat purposes. And they planned to submit the proposal to the cabinet in February next year.
The ruling coalition's plan to significantly relax restrictions on weapons exports has been met with strong opposition from domestic civil groups, as they warn that the move would put Japan on a dangerous path.
The demonstrators urged the government to strictly uphold Article 9 of Japan's pacifist constitution, which renounces the nation's right to engage in war or to resort to military force to resolve international conflicts.
"The Constitution clearly renounces war as a sovereign right and stipulates that Japan shall not possess land, sea, and air forces. However, despite the Constitution's existence as the cardinal law, they constantly adopt laws that hollow out and weaken the Constitution's spirit. And Japanese companies keep manufacturing and exporting weapons to make profits, which worries me tremendously. I keenly feel that Japan is already at a dangerous edge," said Yoko Sugiura, editor-in-chief of magazine Consumers Union of Japan.
"During the Diet debates, it was the Liberal Democratic Party that formulated the Three Non-Nuclear Principles, a system specifically embodying the ideals of Article 9 of the Constitution. The Japan Innovation Party's claim that Article 9 has nothing to do with arms exports ban and embargo is erroneous both factually and conceptually. And the issue is a very serious," said Koji Sugihara, a representative of the Network Against Japan Arms Trade, a local citizens' group.
"In the spirit of Article 9 of the Constitution, arms exports must be stopped, and the policy of prohibiting weapons must be restored. Given this clear shift to militarization, we fear that if it this goes on, there is no way to guarantee the safety of our lives. So we will continue to appeal to society to collectively ponder on how to stop this trend," said Misaki Nishimura, a representative of the Japan Peace Committee.
Japanese civil groups urge gov't to ban arms exports
