China expects nearly 50m railway trips during upcoming holiday travel rush

BEIJING -- China is likely to see 49.7 million railway passenger trips from Friday to next Monday during the upcoming holiday travel rush, according to the national railway operator.

A peak of more than 14 million passenger trips in a single day is expected on April 3, the first day of the three-day Tomb Sweeping Day holiday, said China State Railway Group Co Ltd on Friday.

With domestic COVID-19 control efforts paying off, travel demand has picked up as people opt to visit family and friends, go on spring outings and worship their ancestors during the holiday, said the group.

Railway authorities will increase transportation capacities to handle the spike in trips during this period, with 10,046 passenger trains to be put into daily operation, up 10.6 percent from 2019.

Tomb Sweeping Day, also known as the Qingming Festival, falls on April 4 this year. It is a traditional Chinese holiday during which people pay tribute to their deceased family and friends. Many also spend the three-day holiday traveling.