'More tourists will come when border open for longer'
Officials on Tuesday brushed aside concerns that opening border crossings for longer over Lunar New Year will discourage mainland tourists from spending the night in Hong Kong.   Chief Executive John Lee earlier announced that the border checkpoint at Shenzhen Bay will operate 24 hours a day from February 9 to 13, while the Lo Wu crossing will be open until 2am on February 9 and 11. Speaking to reporters later in the day, Acting Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk said he believes tourists will be able to return to the mainland without difficulty over the festive period next month. Overnight bus services will be stepped up and trains will run until early morning, and Cheuk said they will be able to carry 80,000 passengers to border checkpoints from 9pm to 1am on February 9 and 11 each. Asked why Lo Wu cannot stay open till late on more days, transport minister Lam Sai-hung said the connecting East Rail Line needs periods of closure for maintenance work to be carried out. Tourism minister Kevin Yeung said he expects Hong Kong will welcome a greater number of visitors over Lunar New Year thanks to the new arrangements. "There will be some people who think it'll be easier to go back to the mainland and not spend the night in Hong Kong. But, on the other hand, I also believe more people will come to Hong Kong during the day," he said. "And we're also confident that with the range of events here, including the parade on the first day of the Lunar New Year and the fireworks display on the second, more tourists will come to stay for a few days. It'll be different from New Year's Eve when there was a fireworks show on one night only."