The long-awaited Hong Kong-Singapore 'travel bubble' has been delayed due to a rise in Covid-19 cases.

The highly-anticipated 'air travel bubble' between Hong Kong and Singapore was postponed on Saturday, less than a day before its scheduled launch.

The bubble was designed to allow quarantine-free air travel between the two Asian cities, but a surge in Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong has led to a two-week delay, according to Edward Yau, Hong Kong’s commerce secretary, during a press conference on Saturday.

Hong Kong reported 43 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, marking the highest daily increase in over three months. Of these, 36 were locally transmitted, with 13 cases having no known source of infection.

The quarantine-free corridor was intended to revive tourism and business travel between Hong Kong and Singapore, both of which had largely contained the virus. Hong Kong has reported 5,561 Covid-19 cases and 108 deaths since the pandemic started, while Singapore has recorded 58,000 infections and 28 deaths.

Quarantine-free travel would have been a significant step for both Hong Kong and Singapore, where strict border controls have been enforced for months. When the pandemic began, both governments closed their borders, barring most non-residents and short-term visitors. In Hong Kong, returning residents face a 14-day quarantine and must wear an electronic bracelet to monitor their movements.

How the bubble was intended to function

The bubble was scheduled to kick off on Sunday, with one daily flight to each city, initially allowing 200 passengers per flight. Plans were later in place to expand to two daily flights.

Travelers would have been required to meet specific conditions before flying, such as not having traveled in the last 14 days, and undergoing mandatory Covid-19 tests. However, they would not have been subject to quarantine, stay-home orders, or a controlled itinerary upon arrival.

The arrangement always included the condition that if the Covid-19 situation worsened in either city, the plan would be suspended.

On Saturday morning, Singapore’s Civil Aviation Authority confirmed that the Hong Kong travel bubble would proceed as planned. However, later in the day, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung announced a change of course.

Ong Ye Kung explained, 'Considering the evolving situation in Hong Kong, Secretary Edward Yau and I held further discussions this afternoon and decided to postpone the launch of the air travel bubble for two weeks. We will review the situation in two weeks and provide an update on the new launch date.'

Hong Kong has experienced a significant spike in coronavirus cases in recent days, after several weeks of relatively low case numbers.

The Centre for Health Protection in Hong Kong has strongly advised the public to refrain from all non-essential travel outside the city and urged residents to minimize outings, dining out, and social interactions.

'The magnitude of the increase is extremely concerning,' said Chuang Shuk-kwan, head of the Communicable Disease Branch at Hong Kong’s Centre for Health Protection, during a statement on Saturday.

She cautioned that the recent surge in cases will be 'extremely challenging to manage.'