The new state-of-the-art ferry waiting hall for passengers traveling from Xiamen in southeast Fujian province to the city of Jinmen in Taiwan goes into service on June 3. [Photo/china-fjftz.gov.cn]

A new state-of-the-art waiting hall for ferry passengers traveling from the port city of Xiamen in southeast Fujian province to the city of Jinmen in Taiwan, went into service at Xiamen's Wutong ferry terminal on June 3, local media reported.

The first group of 165 passengers waited for their ship at the new waiting hall on the opening day.

A raft of intelligent technological devices is available in the hall to improve the processing of passengers.

With paperless customs clearances available at the terminal, passengers now need only show their certificates or faces to the gate machine without any other paper document before boarding the ship.

Statistics from Xiamen's immigration department indicated that the number of passengers traveling between Xiamen and Jinmen by sea soared from 20,800 in 2001 to 1.75 million in 2018.

Wutong Port, the biggest ferry terminal on the Chinese mainland opposite Taiwan, has played a vital role in enhancing cross-Straits communications and economic development, said Wang Baoyu, deputy director of Xiamen Port Office.

Wang added that Wutong Port will further improve the construction of support facilities and introduce further measures to develop the facility into a smart and banner port in Xiamen.