Short-distance tourist routes popular with train passengers

Ti Gong

Ti Gong

Travelers made 4.29 million train trips in the Yangtze River Delta region between Thursday and Saturday, with another 900,000 estimated for Sunday, China Railway Shanghai Group announced Sunday morning. 

The travel peak was on May 1 when 1.76 million train trips were recorded in the region, a record after the latest Spring Festival, the group said. 

On Sunday, short-distance tourist routes such as Shanghai-Nanjing, Shanghai-Hangzhou, Hangzhou-Ningbo and Hangzhou-Huangshan will experience a travel peak, the group said. 

An extra seven train services have been scheduled.

From Saturday afternoon, the Hangzhou-Huangshan high-speed railway was especially busy with passengers going to Qiandao Lake and the Yellow Mountains.

A total of 127,000 passengers are expected to use Shanghai train services on Sunday. 

Shanghai Railway Station is predicted to receive 38,000 passengers and Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station 69,000, according to the group.

The majority will be making short-distance trips in the region, the group said. 

Local resident Angela Xu embarked on a train heading to Fuzhou, Fujian Province, with her friend at Hongqiao Railway Station. 

"We planned the trip before the Spring Festival, which was delayed by the COVID-19 outbreak," she said. "We were attracted to Fujian because of its delicious food such as fish balls and satay noodles."

Yang Junhua, a staffer at the Shanghai Railway Station, said: "There is an estimated 30 percent decrease in rail passengers during the holiday compared with the same period last year due to the epidemic. Most passengers choose tours to areas neighboring Shanghai."

Rail passengers will undergo infrared thermometer temperature checks at railway stations in Shanghai, and they will be required to wear masks during their trips.

Passengers are reminded to prepare their health QR codes in advance to comply with public health precautions.