Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki (left) visits the Novel IC Exploration Facility at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) in Nansha, Guangzhou on Jan 9, 2024. Next to him is the president of the university, Professor Lionel Ni (right).
Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki on Tuesday praised the advanced automatic driving technologies and the open environment for nurturing innovation talents in Guangzhou's Nansha District, saying the special administrative region could take a leaf from Nansha's achievements.
Chan, who's on the second day of a three-day visit to Chinese mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, earlier attended a ceremony for the signing of an agreement on talent cooperation between the SAR and Guangdong province.
He continued his visit to the Guangdong provincial capital, viewing the operations of Pony.ai -- an automatic driving technology startup based in Nansha.
During the tour, Chan boarded an unmanned taxi developed by the company. He described the ride as “smooth and safe”, saying the technologies have enabled vehicles to use the roads easily without a human driver.
The HKSAR government is also promoting the application of automatic driving technologies, including the implementation of a new statutory regulatory framework this year to lift institutional barriers for automated vehicles, he said. The government also supports Airport Authority Hong Kong in introducing an automatic transportation system at SkyCity and Hong Kong Port at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, and further expanding the transit system to Tung Chung -- a residential town adjacent to Hong Kong International Airport.
Chan said he believes a wider adoption of unmanned driving technologies can promote Hong Kong's smart transportation and ease the city's lack of professional drivers.
Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki on Tuesday praised the advanced automatic driving technologies and the open environment for nurturing innovation talents in Guangzhou's Nansha District, saying the special administrative region could take a leaf from Nansha's achievements.
Chan, who's on the second day of a three-day visit to Chinese mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, earlier attended a ceremony for the signing of an agreement on talent cooperation between the SAR and Guangdong province.
He continued his visit to the Guangdong provincial capital, viewing the operations of Pony.ai -- an automatic driving technology startup based in Nansha.
During the tour, Chan boarded an unmanned taxi developed by the company. He described the ride as “smooth and safe”, saying the technologies have enabled vehicles to use the roads easily without a human driver.
The HKSAR government is also promoting the application of automatic driving technologies, including the implementation of a new statutory regulatory framework this year to lift institutional barriers for automated vehicles, he said. The government also supports Airport Authority Hong Kong in introducing an automatic transportation system at SkyCity and Hong Kong Port at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, and further expanding the transit system to Tung Chung -- a residential town adjacent to Hong Kong International Airport.
Chan said he believes a wider adoption of unmanned driving technologies can promote Hong Kong's smart transportation and ease the city's lack of professional drivers.
In Nansha, Chan also visited the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) -- the first Hong Kong-mainland cooperative educational institution established following the implementation of the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in 2019.
On the campus, he exchanged views with Hong Kong students on the SAR's innovation technology, healthcare and education development. Chan said the students told him they enjoy studying in Nansha.
Chan encouraged the students to grasp the nation's huge development opportunities, especially in the Greater Bay Area.
Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki (sixth left) meets with Mayor of Huizhou Municipal People's Government Wen Jinrong (sixth right), in Huizhou on Jan 9, 2024.
Chan began his mainland visit on Monday. He witnessed the signing of a framework agreement to set up a coordination mechanism on Guangdong-Hong Kong talent cooperation, as well as co-chairing the mechanism's inaugural on the first day, in a bid to build a high-caliber talent hub in the Greater Bay Area.
He will also visit Huizhou and Shenzhen before wrapping up the trip on Wednesday.