Passenger flows have remained high on the "mini three links" ferry routes between Fuzhou City of east China's Fujian Province and the island of Matsu under the jurisdiction of China's Taiwan region this summer.
The "mini three links" refers to small-scale trade, shipping and postal services between Fujian Province, and the islands of Kinmen and Matsu in the Taiwan region.
As of Friday, the Fuzhou-Matsu route had handled over 52,000 passenger trips this year, representing a year-on-year increase of 51 percent. Since July 1, the route has served more than 8,000 passenger trips, marking a year-on-year increase of 43 percent.
On Friday morning, a passenger ferry carrying 105 passengers from Matsu's Baisha terminal arrived at Fuzhou's Huangqi ferry terminal, shortly after a ferry carrying 31 passengers departed Huangqi for Matsu.
"Taking advantage of the summer vacation, I've followed my son and daughter-in-law, taking along my granddaughters, to visit the mainland. We want the children to experience the mainland's beautiful landscape, and we are going to stay for five days," said Lo Cheng-lung, a passenger from Matsu.
"It's summer vacation now, so I've come to Fuzhou to visit some interesting attractions like the famous Sanfang Qixiang neighborhood," said Tseng Hsuan, another passenger from Matsu.
Literally Three Lanes and Seven Alleys, Sanfang Qixiang is a historic and cultural area in the city of Fuzhou dating from the late Jin Dynasty (265-420). Covering an area of 0.38 square kilometers, it is celebrated as an architectural museum of Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasty buildings, including numerous historic residences of notable figures designated as national monuments.
Currently, there are two "mini three links" passenger ferry routes operating between Fuzhou and Matsu -- the Huangqi-Matsu route and the Mawei-Matsu route, with a total of eight daily round sailings between both sides.
The passengers taking the routes during the summer period are mainly families and cross-Strait study tour groups, with family trips in domination. The inbound and outbound passenger flows for family reunion and tourism are showing a steady upward trend.
Regarding the high summer travel flows, the Fuzhou Border Inspection Station has continuously optimized its deployment of personnel to cope with the inbound and outbound flows effectively.
"We have activated a special duty plan for the summer period, forecasting peak passenger flows in advance. We open additional inspection channels timely and arrange more police officers to strengthen pre-clearance guidance, ensuring smooth customs clearance for inbound and outbound passengers," said Lin Yanxia, a police officer at the Fuzhou Border Inspection Station.
Summer passenger flow remains high on Fuzhou-Matsu ferry routes
