Delta region sees big jump in summer travel rush

THE railway stations in the Yangtze River Delta region saw more than 141 million people depart during the summer travel rush over the past two months, which was 10 percent more than last year and a record high compared with the previous years.

Some 100 million of these passengers traveled within the delta region, many of them students and families on outing or visiting friends.

The busiest station was East Hangzhou Railway Station in neighboring Zhejiang Province, it saw 13.6 million people depart. It was the first summer travel rush when another station was busier than Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station.

The three railway stations in Shanghai saw 23.5 million people leave, which was also a new high.

During the two-month summer vacation, trains from Shanghai to cities like Beijing, Urumqi (in northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region), and Huangshan (neighboring Anhui Province), where popular tourist destinations are located, were mostly packed.

The new high-speed train route from Shanghai to Lanzhou, capital of the northwestern Gansu Province, was also popular. Some 90 percent of seats on the trains on this route were occupied every day.

A total of 1,008 temporary trains were dispatched by railway authorities to facilitate the passenger flow out of the city.

Meanwhile, ticket sales for the National Day break from October 1 to 7 will open for passengers from September 2.

Shanghai Railway Station said that various events will be held to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China in many cities. Passengers with travel plans are advised to buy tickets as early as possible.