By IANS,
Beijing: The massive spring tour has kicked off in China when tens of millions of Chinese travel to their native places to celebrate the Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New Year, falls Jan 23. It is the most important traditional Chinese festival for family reunions.
Millions of Chinese travel to their homes during the 40-day rush, known as “chunyun” in China.
The railways alone will carry 235 million passengers during the period this year, the railways ministry said.
“After a whole year of hard work away from home, I can finally go back home to see my child,” said Luo Lirong, a migrant worker, who arrived at the railway station in Xining, the capital of Qinghai province, one hour ahead.
“I cannot pretend that I am not in a hurry,” she told Xinhua.
To cope with the traffic, railway authorities, bus companies and airlines are increasing their capacity.
The railways began allowing customers to book tickets online last year. During major holidays in the past, people would wait for hours in long queues before getting to the ticket sales windows, only to find that tickets were sold out.
A majority of rural migrants take trains to travel to their home, as they are cheaper than other mode transport. The homecoming is treasured as many go home once a year, while some only return once every several years.