Hongkongers stuck for hours as 673,000 return via land checkpoints after long weekend

Residents returning from mainland China after Buddha’s Birthday long weekend get caught in long, winding queues and jam-packed checkpoints

Thousands of Hongkongers were stuck for hours at multiple land checkpoints in what one traveller called “unprecedented” large crowds on Monday night, as more than 673,000 residents returned to the city from mainland China after the long weekend.

Some were also reportedly turned away from the Shenzhen Bay border before its closing time on Monday night.

Among the 740,000 residents entering the city on Monday, 90 per cent returned via land control points.

According to statistics released by the Immigration Department on Tuesday, the Lo Wu border saw over 165,000 Hongkongers entering the city the day before. Official figures showed that the Lok Ma Chau Spur Line recorded 129,000 residents entering the city, while the Shenzhen Bay checkpoint saw 124,000 local arrivals.

Residents returning to Hong Kong after the Buddha’s Birthday long weekend ran into long, winding queues and huge crowds at the border, with some waiting for over three hours to clear immigration.

One user, who posted videos of the packed Shenzhen Bay border at around 8pm, said that multiple buses were stuck in a jam on the road outside the checkpoint as travellers lugging suitcases made their way through on foot.