Carrying 99 passengers, the ship "Anqi XI" leaves Mawei at around 11:30 a.m. on May 17. It reached Matsu in 80 minutes. [Photo/Xinhua]

A new passenger sea route was launched on May 17 linking Fuzhou's Mawei district and Matsu, a small islet of Taiwan, shortening the travel time between the two places from 120 to 80 minutes.

Carrying 99 passengers, the ship "Anqi XI" left a new port located in Langqi, Mawei district at around 11:30 a.m., embarking on a 23-nautical-mile journey.

According to Nancy Wu, a businesswoman from Matsu, the new route, with shorter travel time, higher frequency and lower cost, will bring huge convenience to those who commute between the two places.

An official at the Mawei district pointed out that the route will now be the fastest and most convenient channel for passengers and cargo connections between Fuzhou and Matsu, which will facilitate people-to-people exchanges and boost tourism.

A round trip ticket on the new route is priced at 230 yuan ($33.3), and the first 10,000 tourists visiting Matsu via the new route will receive a subsidy of 200 yuan each.

The original Mawei-Matsu route, 32 nautical miles long, opened in January 2001. Official data show that the route has transported more than 645,000 passengers in over 12,000 voyages since inception.

To date, Fujian has launched passenger sea routes to the cities of Kinmen, Matsu, Keelung, Taipei and Taichung with the island.