Why breaking Chinese law at the express rail terminus in Hong Kong is harder than it sounds
From what I saw, if you really wanted to break some mainland law, you would have to be totally determined. First you would need to buy a ticket, then pass a ticket barrier and MTR baggage X-ray, then go down to the next level where the Hong Kong identity card checks operate as usual, then walk past a whole range of duty free shops, as you do in any border crossing, and finally come to a broad yellow line that demarcates the crossing point. Then, and only then, do you meet the first mainland authorities, who process your passport and baggage smoothly before you proceed to the waiting hall. It would not be possible for a mainland official to reach over the boundary and grab you.
Instead, as an extra benefit, my Hong Kong phone SIM card worked almost all the way to Shenzhen station.
Thank goodness this new piece of infrastructure is now in place and functioning. I wonder what our politicians will now chatter about to justify their generous Legislative Council salaries.
Bob Rogers, Sai Kung