Cross-Strait sea passenger transport up 13.6 pct

China's transport authority said Thursday that 840,000 passenger trips were made on ships crossing the Taiwan Strait in the first half of the year, a rise of 13.6 percent from a year earlier.

Travellers from the Chinese mainland made 91,000 trips by ship to Taiwan in the period, up 106 percent from last year, as a high-speed passenger ferry links the city of Taichung in Taiwan and Pingtan county in the mainland's Fujian province, according to the Ministry of Transport.

Meanwhile, trips made by passengers from Fujian's coastal areas to Taiwan's Kinmen, Penghu and Matzu islands increased 7.6 percent to 749,000 in the first six months, the ministry said.

However, goods transport dropped as cross-Strait trade fell. In the first half, bulk cargo and container shipping decreased by 5.4 percent and 3.4 percent, respectively, from the previous year.

Due to the ministry's efforts to restrict deviation, cross-Strait goods transport via a third destination fell 68 percent from a year earlier to 1.95 million tonnes in the period, which has helped reduce both costs and emissions, the ministry said.

The ministry said the cross-Strait transport structure has improved, as high-value goods shipment continued to grow. Direct delivery of liquid chemical products across the Strait jumped 31 percent year on year to 1.35 million tonnes in the first six months.

Ports for direct cross-Strait transport have climbed to 83 since direct shipping between the mainland and Taiwan started in 2008. In July 2011, the ministry issued measures to restrict deviation in a bid to encourage direct transport.