The Liantang Checkpoint, the sixth cross-border checkpoint between Hong Kong and Shenzhen of Guangdong Province, will be constructed to reduce the congestion at the existing checkpoints, Shenzhen Party chief Li Hongzhong said Wednesday.

The statement was the first official confirmation that an agreement had been reached between Shenzhen and Hong Kong to that effect. Authorities from both sides have long expressed their intention to build the checkpoint, which will connect Heung Yuen Wai in Hong Kong’s northeastern New Territories with Liantang in Shenzhen’s Luohu District.

“There are already five checkpoints between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. But they are not enough (to handle the traffic flow) due to the two sides’ close relations,” Li said on the sidelines of the 17th National Congress of the CPC.

A difficulty facing the project was that roads in the proposed location were too narrow due to the high population density in the surrounding area, Li said.

“The two sides are discussing this issue,” he said. “However, the construction of Liantang Checkpoint would definitely go ahead.”

The Liantang area, which used to comprise scattered villages, has grown into an industrial zone with labor-intensive industries.

The new checkpoint will be designed to enable vehicles from other cities to cross the border without entering downtown Shenzhen. According to preliminary estimates, the checkpoint will handle 28,000 container trailers every day.

However, Hong Kong conservation groups have warned that the heritage value of Heung Yuen Wai, comprising mainly wetland, could be compromised if no proper controls were put in place to shield it from traffic and business generated by the checkpoint.