More people go tomb sweeping ahead of Qingming Festival
Traffic guidance leading to Haigang Lingyuan Cemetery.
The pleasant weather over the weekend has led to busier traffic as Shanghai's cemeteries witnessed an increasing number of sweepers compared with the same period last year.
Chinese people pay respects to their ancestors during the Qingming Festival, which falls on April 4 this year. Saturday was the first peak day of the festival.
As early as 7am, traffic congestion on Lianggang Avenue leading to the Haigang Lingyuan Cemetery in the Pudong New Area had extended nearly two kilometers. The tombs saw than more than 16,000 sweepers and over 4,500 vehicles as of 3pm on the day.
At 8am, parking lots of the cemetery had almost no vacancies.
Students pay tribute.
Shuttle buses between the nearest Metro station and the cemetery have been operated to alleviate traffic pressure, and traffic police and security guards were at the scene to maintain order and direct traffic.
The cemetery also received students and fans of famous Yuju artist Xiao Guifang on Saturday as her urns were interred on the day.
Xiao, dieing at 97 years of age, brought many classic characters on stage and was dedicated to the inheritance and promotion of Yuju opera through her life.
Shanghai Fushouyuan Cemetery in Qingpu District recorded 19,926 visitors and 5,200 vehicles on Saturday, in comparison to 16,933 and 3,746 on last year's peak day. The cemetery opened a temporary parking lot to cope with the surging demand.
In Jinshan District, Songying Shanzhuang and Fengjing Cemetery received about 23,000 sweepers on the day, posing an increase from previous years.
Combined efforts such as enhanced patrols and temporary parking lots were made across the city to ease traffic congestion.
A commemorative event at Haigang Lingyuan Cemetery.
