A celebration event was held on Nov 30 to mark the second anniversary of the launching of a passenger ferry sailing between Pingtan and Taiwan.

The Haixia, a high-speed roll-on and off passenger ship, has transferred more than 200,000 people and 4,000 tons of cargo in the past two years, according to its owner, the Fujian Haixia High-Speed Roll-On and Roll-Off Shipping Company.

The Haixia is the world's fastest passenger ship of its kind, with a maximum speed of 96 nautical mph and a capacity of 782 passengers.

The maiden voyage of Haixia happened on Nov 30, 2011, as the ferry successfully sailed to Taichung city in Taiwan.

The past year witnessed a sharp hike in Haixia's passenger number, with increasing voyages and routes. Passenger numbers exceeded 10,000 in March, 2012 and reached 100,000 in November. The numbers doubled as of Oct 28, hitting the 200,000 milestone.

On May 22, Haixia carried out a trial trip to Taipei. The route was officially launched on Oct 9, greatly expanding the cross-Straits marine channel.

After two years of service, Haixia has become a top choice for people across the Straits in tourism, business trips, family visits, cultural exchange and cargo transportation. Many celebrities in economy and culture sectors of Taiwan showed tremendous support by boarding the ferry to commute between Taiwan and Chinese mainland.

Lin Kongxiong, a Taiwan businessman, became Haixia's 200,000th passenger. He received a ticket package as an award at the Nov 30 celebration ceremony. He said he takes the Haixia at least twice a month.

"The biggest advantage of the Taipei-Pingtan marine route for me is that it really saves much time," said the lucky ticket winner.

The Haixia started to engage in cargo transportation and postal delivery earlier this year and, as of the end of Nov, it transported approximately 4,000 tons of freight, according to Yang Cheng, general manager of the shipping company.

Currently Haixia sails between Pingtan and Taichung on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, and sails between Pingtan and Taipei on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Yang also revealed that in 2014 the company will launch another ferry of similar size and capacity to the Haixia for the Pingtan-Taipei route to ensure the voyage is available every day.

Edited by Chen Zhilin and Nigel Moffiet