Singapore and Hong Kong travel bubble postponed

A new travel bubble between Singapore and Hong Kong It was supposed to be released on November 22 (tomorrow), but it was postponed a few hours before its launch.

Why is the travel bubble delayed

One of the conditions of this new travel bubble between Singapore and Hong Kong was that it could be postponed if there was an increase in cases of unconventional coronavirus. There was always the risk that this might eventually be called, although most people did not expect this to happen with the launch.

Singapore’s transport minister is today Announced That The start of the travel bubble will be postponed for at least two weeks. The decision comes after Hong Kong saw an increase in new coronavirus cases in recent days – Hong Kong reported new cases today, up from 3 reported yesterday, an increase from most single figures we saw in previous days.

The date of the new launch is yet to be decided based on the evolution of the situation, as no final decision has been made. Passengers could still continue their journey, although they would have to do so under the old rules, which would require a seven-day quarantine.

This Advertising Immediately after the travel bubble was postponed, Singapore announced that additional coronavirus testing would be required upon arrival in Singapore, meaning that tourists would have to take four coronavirus tests to travel as part of the arrangement.

The travel bubble was called a day before its launch

How the travel bubble was supposed to work

In some original contexts, both Singapore and Hong Kong have done very well, keeping the number of coronavirus cases low. Both places have largely closed their borders for visitors. With Travel bubble concept, Passengers could go between the two destinations without the typical quarantine.

However, there are a number of restrictions associated with it:

• Passengers would need to fly on special travel bubble flights so that they would not merge with transport passengers; There were a maximum of 200 daily commuters as part of the arrangement
• Four coronavirus tests are required (and are also expensive) to participate in this, including pre- and post-travel testing on both ends.

There’s no denying that the focus of these travel bubbles was to reduce the risk rather than make the journey easier and more accessible, and that’s totally justified. But this shows you that despite a lot of precautions, the concept was risky even before the launch. Risks currently associated with international travel Do not apply only to areas where the coronavirus is not well managed.

I’d be excited to see if the new travel bubble actually launches in a few weeks, or if this concept just doesn’t make it.

The travel bubble was supposed to be limited to 200 people per day

Bottom line

Singapore and Hong Kong were to launch the travel bubble concept tomorrow, allowing passengers to skip quarantine while taking a lot of tests. The concept was also based on cases where there was at least a spike, and unfortunately that’s something that happened before the launch.

Probably a lot of people paid for coronavirus tests for their departure tomorrow, so they’ve gotten out of pocket for something. Hopefully they can cancel the hotel and activities without at least a penalty.

I would be curious to know if this concept actually happens in a few weeks, or if there will be a delay in doing this longer than that.

Would you be surprised to see this travel bubble postponed before launch?