The Fujian Haixia High-Speed Passenger RORO Shipping Company confirmed the travel schedule for the Straits ship from this October to February next year. The ship will travel every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday and suspend service on Feb 11 and 12, the second and third day of the Chinese New Year holiday, respectively.

During the new schedule period, the fee for a standard-cabinet ticket will be 500 yuan ($80.20) in Pingtan, with exemptions for fuel tax and dock service fees, and 2,500 TWD ($85.79) in Taichung, Taiwan.

Babies under two can ride free of charge with limits of one child for every adult.

The Straits ship carried 91,654 passengers on 252 trips from Pingtan to Taichung in the first 10 months of the year. In October alone, the ship's passengers reached 9,918, a year-on-year increase of 53 percent.

The Straits ship is a direct high-speed commercial roll-on and roll-off ferry connecting Pingtan on the mainland and Taiwan. It started its virgin voyage on Nov 30, 2011, and travels the shortest route across the Taiwan Straits.

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Michael Thai