Taiwan compatriots arrive at  Wutong in Xiamen, Fujian province, after taking a ferry from Kinmen, Taiwan, on Jan 21. [Photo/China Daily]

For years, Taiwan resident Wu Chia-ying has hoped to see a bridge connecting the bustling mainland to Jinmen, an islet attached to Taiwan but lying off the coast of Xiamen, Fujian province.

"When the weather is fine, standing on the seaside of Xiamen, you can even see every inch of Jinmen, as if you could reach the other side by lifting your foot," said the 56-year-old, who started a trading business in Xiamen 20 years ago.

Xiamen and Jinmen - separated by a narrow stretch of water - share geographical ties, dialect and customs. "Residents feel at home when visiting the other city," he said.

Shipping is now the only mode of transportation between them. In 2018, passengers made 1.75 million trips between the two places, the largest since the route's inception in January 2001.

A total of 1,420 vessel trips are scheduled between Xiamen and Jinmen during this year's Spring Festival travel rush, transporting 180,000 passengers, up 4.7 percent year-on-year, local authorities have estimated.

However, although boats come back and forth every day, the waterway traffic is often suspended once typhoons and fog occur, said Wu, who is also president of the Taiwan Businessmen Association in Xiamen.

"It greatly affects people's commuting and also restricts the development of Jinmen and exchanges between the two places," said Wu, a frequent commuter due to business.

While addressing a gathering in Beijing to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Message to Compatriots in Taiwan, President Xi Jinping called for closer cross-Straits ties, and proposed connecting Fujian to the islands of Jinmen and Matsu via water and gas pipelines, an electricity grid and road bridge.