What amounts to the largest human migration in history is about to unfold once again. With Chinese New Year now on our doorstep, the travel authorities are beginning preparations in the hope of avoiding chaos.
In 2012 Chinese travelers made nearly 2.9 billion trips during the 2012 travel peak.This year’s peak period starts on Jan 26 and ends on March 6, and more than 3.1 billion trips will be made in cars or buses, averaging 77.41 million per day, 9 percent more than last year, according to the ministry’s forecast. Meanwhile, about 43 million trips are expected to take place on ships during the 40-day period, a 1.5-percent increase year-on-year.
Transport departments around the country will allocate 840,000 buses and 13,000 passenger ships for the travel peak, a ministry spokesman said.
He added that compared with the travel peak in 2012, this year will see more short or medium-distance journeys on the roads and a larger movement of migrant workers while there will also be a surge in trips made by rural residents.