'One-hour living circle' invigorates GBA

In the words of Li Fan, a woman lawyer who works in Shenzhen and resides in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link has transformed the dreams of Greater Bay Area residents, breaking free from the constraints of geographical boundaries and making the concept of the "one-hour living circle" a tangible reality. The reports on Li Fan embody the experiences of many cross-city commuters in the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link.

Physical connectivity across the GBA has transformed how space and time are experienced. Ambitious infrastructure like the Huangmaohai cross-sea passage and the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link has closed long-standing gaps between the region's eastern and western shores.

With daily traffic now exceeding 100,000 vehicles, the Shenzhen-Zhongshan link alone led to a 90 percent jump in tourist footfalls in Zhongshan in six months. The integration of bridges, including the Humen, Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao, and Nansha bridges, has formed an A-shaped highway network that links Shenzhen's innovation headquarters with the manufacturing bases of Zhongshan, creating a new industrial axis.

High-speed trains have turned the vision of a "one-hour living circle" into reality. With more than 5,400 kilometers of railway and cross-city lines like the Guangzhou-Dongguan-Shenzhen line operating like urban subways, the entire area now functions as a seamlessly connected economic unit, shrinking distances, literally and metaphorically.

The region's ports and airports are also operating as an integrated cluster, enabling customs-cleared goods from Shenzhen to be shipped directly through Zhongshan and Jiangmen ports, slashing cargo dwell time from seven to just two and cutting logistics cost by about 30 percent. With seven major airports, connecting 230 global destinations, the GBA handled over 220 million passengers in 2023, surpassing the air traffic of major bay areas like New York, San Francisco and Tokyo.

Beyond physical infrastructure, the GBA is defined by its institutional innovation. Since the issuing of the Outline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area in 2019, over 600 new policies have been introduced to harmonize systems across Guangdong province, and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions, streamlining administration, from education and healthcare to business, taxation, and talent mobility.

Guangdong's "Bay Area Connect" initiative, driving its development, has redefined connectivity — not just in infrastructure but also in institutional systems and shared identity — creating a powerful testing ground for reforms to enhance China's global competitiveness.

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has become one of China's most dynamic and globally connected economic hubs. Occupying less than 1 percent of China's land mass and with just 6 percent of its population, the Greater Bay Area contributes more than 11 percent of China's GDP. Since 2018, its population has increased from 70 million to more than 86 million, and its total economic output has surged from 10 trillion yuan ($1.39 trillion) to over 14 trillion yuan.

Services that once required multiple border crossings and stacks of paperwork can now be done in minutes. Hong Kong and Macao residents can open businesses, register property, or pay taxes in Guangdong via self-service kiosks or mobile apps, with financial reforms allowing for cross-border tax payments in yuan and instant fund transfers between regions.

Market reforms have been equally ambitious. Business registration across the nine mainland GBA cities is now fully digitalized. In most cities, new companies can be established online within 24 hours. Over 7 million enterprises in the area now operate under a unified "credit-based" regulatory framework, intellectual property rights are better protected with specialized fast-track services, and dedicated innovation zones offer globally competitive services to tech entrepreneurs.

Professional mobility has also seen unprecedented breakthroughs. Hong Kong and Macao professionals, including lawyers, doctors and architects, can now obtain licenses to work in mainland GBA cities. More than 3,200 such professionals have already done so, and more than 20,000 Hong Kong and Macao residents now work in Guangdong. Incubation hubs tailored to meet the needs of young entrepreneurs from Hong Kong and Macao have nurtured over 4,800 projects, creating 5,500 jobs. As a result, for the first time, a true cross-border talent market is taking shape.

To ensure consistency in goods and services, the GBA is establishing shared standards, which now cover over 180 categories in sectors such as food, transportation and vocational training. By the end of 2023, mainland GBA cities had contributed to over 3,700 international and 13,600 national standards — a quiet push to bring local practices in line with global norms. Over 100 demonstration shops now display GBA standards, a symbol of growing regional quality assurance.

These institutional reforms have been accompanied by deepening financial and technological integration. While cross-border movement of people and capital has accelerated, more than 20,000 Macao-registered vehicles have signed up to travel to the mainland, with facial recognition systems at the borders enabling 10-second crossings. And UnionPay and digital yuan systems work across borders.

Besides, the recent Global Investment Promotion Conference for Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area attracted more than 5.7 trillion yuan in new capital, underlining the region's appeal to both domestic and foreign investors.

Yet challenges remain, as development is still uneven between the Pearl River's eastern and western banks. Legal and regulatory gaps, especially in data governance and cross-border finance, still require alignment, with cities continuing to compete for similar industries, increasing the risk of redundant development.

To address these issues, Guangdong must use the "Bay Area Connect" initiative not just as a regional integration tool but also as a platform for higher-standard opening-up, implement pilot trade and investment rules aligned with those of free trade agreements like the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and experiment with institutional openness in data and carbon governance.

The province should also improve its connectivity with Belt and Road markets, helping GBA's standards, technologies and services go global, and facilitate next-generation innovations rooted in technologies like AI and quantum science.

Ultimately, the value of the GBA lies not just in physical proximity or economic output, but in its capability to pilot reforms, test ideas, and export China's experience in regional integration. By strengthening its infrastructure, and institutional and people-to-people exchanges, the GBA is no longer just a driver of Chinese modernization but also the country's gateway to the world.

The author is vice-president at Guangdong University of Foreign Studies.

The views don't necessarily represent those of China Daily.

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