City braces for mass arrival of Spring Festival returnees

Airports, railway stations and highways are preparing for the expected numbers of people returning to the city after the extended Spring Festival holiday.

Pudong and Hongqiao airports will receive huge numbers of passengers from next week with the railway peak expected between February 8 and 10, Yang Xiaoxi, vice director of Shanghai transport Commission told a press conference on Sunday.

Another peak, this time for returning students, is expected on February 15 .

Strict disinfection measures cover railways, fights, the Metro, buses, taxis, expressway service zones and ferries.

Enhanced capacity

The Metro, buses and ferries on the Huangpu River will return to normal operations on February 10, Yang said. 

The Metro Line 9 is fully operational after a major renovation. Line 2 will return to normal on Monday. Trains had not stopped at East Xujing, Hongqiao Railway Station and Hongqiao Airport Terminal 2 stations from January 23 due to tunnel maintenance.

Railway stations have checked temperatures for over 860,000 passengers since January 24, and 134 passengers with high temperature were screened out, said Zhao Lijian, deputy general manager with China Railway's Shanghai bureau. Thermal detectors have been installed at railway stations.

All trains are disinfected at least once a day and ventilation has been improved.

The railway authority has also refunded about 12.4 million tickets due to the outbreak, Zhao added.