A commission ceremony for the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Bridge will be held on Sunday morning (Jun 30) as the new sea crossing will commence service starting 3 pm. 

Travel Industry Council executive director Fanny Yeung Shuk-fan said the commission of the new bridge can better convenience Hongkongers to travel up north as now they no longer need to pass through Fumun during their journey to Zhongshan. 

The journey can also be shortened by 1.5 hours to around half an hour, she added. 

She also believes the new mega link can attract tourists from the far north to travel to Bay Area cities including Hong Kong. 

Hong Kong Tourism Association executive director Timothy Chui Ting-pong said there are already five guided tours, involving over 200 tourists, that will be traveling through the sea crossing on the opening day. 

The tours will then visit the former residence of Sun Yat-sen and have lunch and finally return to Hong Kong the same day via the bridge again. 

Chui expects an overwhelming response for tours from Hong Kong to Guangdong in the summer and the number of tourists will double now that the travel time has been shortened. 

The acceptance checks of the bridge were passed on June 16 after seven years of construction. 

The bridge, about 24 kilometers long and a total of 8 lanes for both bounds, will link Shenzhen and Zhongshan through a set of bridges, islands, tunnels, and underwater interchanges in one.