Macau casinos in talks on joint shuttles idea: SJM CEO

Dec 13, 2017 Newsdesk Latest News, Macau, Top of the deck  

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Macau’s six casino operators have already had “initial contact” regarding the government’s suggestion they should own and run a shared shuttle bus business serving their respective properties, said Ambrose So Shu Fai, chief executive of local operator SJM Holdings Ltd, in Wednesday comments to reporters.

“Each of us [casino operators] may have different needs regarding client sources and routes [of casino shuttles], and on this issue we have to try our best to cooperate and see if we can join some of our routes,” Mr So told the Chinese-language radio service of public broadcaster TDM on the sidelines of a public event.

On December 5, Raimundo do Rosário, Macau’s Secretary for Transport and Public Works, commented to legislators that the city’s six casino operators should seek to have joint shuttle bus services, as a step toward alleviating local traffic congestion.

“We can see some synergy [shared benefits] if all of us can integrate routes, and this can reduce the number of vehicles on the road and the frequency of [bus] runs. This would be a positive for the city’s air quality,” Mr So remarked to local media.

A joint shuttle service between several Cotai resorts –an operation called Cotai Connection – was launched in June last year. The partners in that case are Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd, operator of the Galaxy Macau and Broadway Macau venues on Cotai; Melco Resorts and Entertainment Ltd, which wholly-owns City of Dreams Macau and is 60-percent owner of the Studio City resort on Cotai; and Sands China Ltd, which runs the Venetian Macao, the Plaza Macao, Sands Cotai Central and the Parisian Macao on Cotai.

Since December 1 last year, Macau casino firms Wynn Macau Ltd and MGM China Holdings Ltd have been running a joint shuttle bus route between Macau’s Border Gate and the companies’ respective downtown casinos Wynn Macau and MGM Macau.

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