Galaxy entertainment Group (Galaxy), Melco Crown Entertainment (Melco) and Venetian Macau Limited, owned by Sands China Ltd (Sands China), have launched the ‘Cotai Connection’ a joint shuttle bus route, in order to facilitate the transport of guests and local residents within the Cotai Strip, according to a joint press release. The new project is in line with the recent MSAR policy to reduce the number of gaming operator shuttle buses in Macau, which saw the cancelling of 11 bus routes between Cotai and Taipa districts and the optimisation of 10 routes in February, as reported by Business Daily. Most visitors prefer the shuttle buses operated by the hotels and casinos, however, the average daily utilization of shuttle buses is around 33 per cent, and is identified as a main generator of road congestion in Macau, as mentioned in the ‘Macao Tourism Industry Development Plan’, presented by the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO). The Transport Bureau (DSAT) plan to ease traffic in Macau established a planned cut of 20.55 per cent, from 73 routes to 58 in 2016, however so far Melco Crown has only eliminated one of their bus routes, down to 13 routes. Galaxy is still expected to reduce its bus routes by 18.75 per cent this year, while Sands China has removed the largest number of routes, from 21 down to 17 bus routes, as reported by Business Daily. Now the three gaming operators expect the new service will “advance transportation in Macau” and “not only will the number of shuttle buses travelling between hotels be reduced, alleviating traffic in Cotai, but it will also help streamline the shuttle bus routes and improve visitors’ overall experiences and promote the city as a ‘World Centre of Tourism and Leisure’”, the gaming operator’s joint press release stated. The service, which commenced yesterday, will operate daily from 11:30am to 10:30pm for a three-month trial period, passing through Galaxy Macau, Broadway Macau, Studio City, City of Dreams, The Venetian Macao and Sands Cotai Central, according to the release. No free-loaders In April, MGM China Holdings Ltd and Wynn Macau Ltd started requiring passengers to present a casino loyalty programme membership card or a purchase receipt to be allowed on board the free shuttle buses departing from their respective properties, with City of Dreams, belonging to Melco Crown Entertainment, also starting to demand the same documents for people wanting to use the free shuttle bus route to the Gongbei border gate during rush hour. Enquiries were sent to Galaxy Entertainment Group, Melco Crown Entertainment and Venetian Macau Limited asking if the new Cotai bus route would have any restrictions for users, and if there is any future planned cooperation with gaming locations on the Macau peninsula. Business Daily received an e-mail with the three gaming operator’s joint response stating that the ‘Cotai Connection does not operate routes between Macau and Cotai, and therefore does not affect existing Macau-Cotai routes of the three operators.’
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