Transport in Macau

See also:Secretariat for Transport and Public Works (Macau)

Transport in Macauincludes road, sea, rail and air transport.Roadtransport is the primary mode of transport withinMacau,although a new rail system opened in December 2019 serving the areas ofTaipaandCotai.The main forms of public transport arebusesandtaxis.

Taxi of Macau

Modes of transport out of Macau includeferriestoHong Kongandmainland Chinafrom two ferry terminals, as well ashelicopterservice to Hong Kong. International flights are available fromMacau International Airport.

Internal

Road

Taxi in Macau.

Bus in Macau.

Rickshaw in Macau.

Rickshaw in Macau.

Buses and taxis are the major modes of public transport in Macau.Busservices are frequent and inexpensive,linking theMacau peninsula,Taipa,CotaiandColoane.TransmacandTCMare the only operators of Macau's bus services.Nova Era(zh), which took over the operations ofReolian,merged with TCM on 1 August, 2018.Most hotels (four-starred or above) and gaming venues operate their own fleet of shuttle bus service between theHong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal,Taipa Ferry Terminalor Portas do Cerco (Macau's border to mainland China) and their premises.

Taxis are plentiful near the airport/Taipa ferry terminal, the Hong Kong-Macau and Taipa ferry terminal, and major gaming venues/hotels in the citythough it is harder to get one during rush hours on the streets. Most of Macau's taxis have a black body with cream color top livery. Radio taxis are available for the black cabs.

In order to enhance the quality of taxi services, such as eliminate the language barrier betweentaxidrivers and passengers, the Tourist Office has provided most taxis with a destination guide which includes the names of the most requested destinations inChinese,PortugueseandEnglish.

Thetrishaw,a hybrid of thetricycleand therickshaw,is a unique mode of transport in Macau, though it is mainly for sightseeing purposes but they were a type of mainly used transportation system before the 1970s because of their cheap price. They can easily be found next to Hotel Lisboa and the Macau ferry terminal waiting for passengers.

Panoramic view of the 4.7 km longPonte de Amizade(Friendship Bridge) from theMacau Peninsula(left) to theTaipa Island(right),Macau

Railways

Macau Light Rapid TransitTaipa Line

There is one railway line open in Macau called theMacau Light Rail Transitsystem. Phase 1 of the Taipa line opened for operations in December 2019. Similar to theSingapore Light Rapid Transitsystem, the tracks will be a mix ofelevatedguideways and tunnels, ensuring a dedicated right-of-way separated from road traffic. When completed it will serve passengers on Macau Peninsula, Taipa island, the Cotai reclamation area, theMacau International Airportand theHong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge.

Proposals have been put forward to link Macau to the Chinese railway network by extending the Guangzhou Railway (or, possibly,Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity Mass Rapid Transit) to Cotai throughHengqin Island.However, no decisions have yet been made so far.

Zhuhai Railway Stationof theGuangzhou–Zhuhai Intercity Railwayterminates adjacent to the northern border entrance into Macau atPortas do Cerco.

Other systems include theTeleférico da Guiagondola liftsystem onGuia Hill,and the Elevador Inclinado da Colina daTaipa Grande,aninclined lift.

Others

The Macau Maritime Museumused to have two sailing vessels (which were based on the ancient "junk" form but were remodeled) serving for touring trips between the inner and outer harbours. Along the trip, the crew would introduce the general lifestyle and customs of the local boat dwellers. However, due to theland reclamationworks in the harbour and the maintenance of the boats, all trips have been suspended.

External

Sea

Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal, Macau

TurboJET's Jetfoil (modelBoeing 929)

Over 150 sea-crossing services are scheduled daily between Macau and Hong Kong,and theOuter Harbour Ferry Terminalserves as the major terminal for Macau's passenger traffic by sea. The route is served by high speedcatamarans(with passenger capacity of about 400) andjetfoils(with passenger capacity of about 260) and the journey takes approximately one hour. There are also daily scheduled ferry services between Macau andShenzhen.At present the services are operated byTurboJETfromSheung Wan,Tsim Sha TsuiandHong Kong International Airport.Cotai Water Jetalso operates services betweenTaipa Ferry Terminaland theSheung Wan,Tsim Sha Tsui and Hong Kong International Airport. Apart from the sea routes there are also regular scheduled helicopter services between Hong Kong and Macau, which are operated bySky Shuttle.The trip takes approximately 20 minutes.

A sea-crossing service has been launched byTurboJETwhich travels between theHong Kong International Airportand Macau. This differs from the above Macau-Hong Kong route since travelers who arrive in Hong Kong by air do not have to go through Hong Kong immigration's passport control and can board a direct ferry to Macau through a special transfer terminal within the airport. On the return trip, travelers can directly reach theHong Kong International Airportby ferry (a dedicated check-in desk for the service is available at the Hong Kong-Macau Ferry Terminal) and arrive at the airport without going through Hong Kong immigration's passport control, though airline check-in has to be done for some airlines within the airport prior to boarding a plane. Later on, the Cotai Water Jet launched the same service linking Hong Kong Airport and Macau but mostly embarked at Taipa Ferry Terminal.

A new ferry terminal in Taipa, which is adjacent to theMacau International Airport,was opened in 2017 and some of the passenger traffic by sea will be diverted to the new facility. It is expected to act as a major hub for passenger transfer between theHong Kong International Airportand the Macau International Airport.

From theInner Harbour Ferry Terminal(Terminal Marítimo de Passageiros do Porto Interior), ferry services were available between Macau and Wanzai,Zhuhaiuntil January, 2016 due to safety issues at theWanzai Ferry Terminal.On 31 December 2019, the Macau government announced that the Wanzai Port will officially reopen on January 23 with an hourly immigration capacity of 3,840 crossings. To transport passengers between Macau and Zhuhai, the mainland ferry company Yuet Tung will arrange one ferry every 15 minutes, amounting to four ferries every hour. Each ferry can take a maximum of 280 passengers.

Air

Macau International Airport

Air service in Macau began in the 1930s withPan American Airwaysoperatingseaplanesfrom Macau to Hong Kong and lasted until 1941.In 1948Cathay Pacific Airwayscommenced Hong Kong to Macau seaplane service under their subsidiaryMacau Air Transport Company(MATCO). MATCO operated from the Outer Harbour Terminal along Avenida da Amizade toKai Tak AirportinHong Kong.The scheduled passenger service continued until 1961 when MATCO ceased operations.

TheMacau International Airport,located at Taipa, serves as the terminal for Macau's international air traffic. It was inaugurated on 9 November 1995 and has since established a number of regular flights between Macau and major cities in Northeast and Southeast Asia, such asBangkok,Beijing,Kaohsiung,Kuala Lumpur,Manila,Osaka,Seoul,Shanghai,Singapore,andTaipei.

Passengers who would like to enter mainland China by land can use the "Two Customs, One Checkpoint" service (or the AIR-TO-LAND Flow Express Bus - Two Customs, One Checkpoint) provided by the Macau International Airport. Passengers can request the "Express Link" service at the check-in counter of their respective airlines. When arriving at the Macau International Airport, they can simply follow the "Express Link" signs and board the Air-to-Land transfer. Passengers do not have to go through Macau's immigration and customs checkpoint until they reach the border of mainland China.

Owing to its relatively low landing fees and the business opportunities brought by the booming gaming industry in Macau, the airport has attracted several of Asia'slow-cost carrierssuch asAirAsia,Tigerair,Cebu Pacific,etc. to establish regular flights between Macau and several major cities in Southeast Asia. As a result, it has been gradually developing into a major hub for low-cost air travel within the region. Other traditional carriers, such as the local flag carrierAir Macau,the Taiwanese carrierEVA Air,and even carriers which operate similar routes from Hong Kong, are facing potential challenges from these newcomers.

Due to a lack of intercontinental flights from Macau, air passengers are also served byHong Kong International AirportandShenzhen Bao'an International Airport.Passengers can take ferries from the Outer Harbor and Taipa terminals to theSkypierin Hong Kong,orFuyong Ferry Terminalin Shenzhen,without clearing customs or immigration at the other side. There is also a helicopter service to Shenzhen.

Roads, bridges and tunnels

Macau Sai Van Bridge.

Further information:List of roads in Macau,List of bridges in Macau,andList of tunnels in Macau

Macau has 321 kilometres of public roads, three bridges (viaducts) linking the Macau Peninsula and Taipa, and a tunnel through the Guia Hill linking the Horta e Costa area and the New Port Area (NAPE). The three bridges are (from east to west) theFriendship Bridge (Ponte de Amizade);theMacau-Taipa Bridge (Ponte Governador Nobre de Carvalho);and theSai Van Bridge (Ponte de Sai Van).

TheLotus Bridgelinks Cotai withHengqin New Areaof Zhuhai. Unlikemainland China,where traffic drives on the right, traffic in Macau and Hong Kong drives on the left, therefore a special design has been used to build this bridge to facilitate the change in driving directions.

Roads are generally narrow at the heart of the city and parked cars are always found on both sides of the road. Traffic congestion has been a major problem throughout the day owing to the lack of an efficient mass transit system and a relatively high car to population ratio.

There are four land cross-border checkpoints, Portas do Cerco, Parque Industrial Transfronteiriço, located at Ilha Verde, Cotai (Lotus) Checkpoint, and theHong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau BridgeCheckpoint for connection Mainland China. Except for Portas do Cerco, which operates from 06:00 to 01:00, the other checkpoints are in 24-hour operation.

The recent opening of theHong Kong–Zhuhai–Macau Bridge,opened in October 2018 has formed the first single road link betweenHong Kong,Macauand the Chinese mainland atZhuhai.This 50 km link consists of a series of bridges and tunnels crossing theLingdingyangchannel, that connects these three major cities on thePearl River DeltainChina.

Ports

• Macau Container Port,located at the Inner Harbour area on the west side of theMacaupeninsula
• Ká Hó Port,located on theColoaneIsland

Airports

Airports

There is only one airport located within Macau. Service began in 1995. Previously, seaplanes operated in Macau.

Location	ICAO	IATA	Airport name
Taipa Island(Ilha da Taipa)	VMMC	MFM	Macau International Airport

Heliports and helipads

There are two heliports in Macau.

Location	ICAO	IATA	Airport name
Taipa Island(Ilha da Taipa)	VMMC	MFM	Macau International Airport
Macau Peninsula	VMMH	XZM	Macau Heliport at Outer Harbour Ferry Terminal

External links

• Macau Ferry Information
• Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau of Macau
• City Guide of Macau
• Macau SAR Government Official Website
• Macau International Airport Official Website