Passenger flows surge as migrant workers return to work

Holiday season train trips in China surpassed the 200-million mark on Saturday as migrant workers and college students began returning to their jobs and universities following the Lantern Festival.(Photo: Chinanews.com)

China's public transport experienced surging passenger flows during the weekend as millions of migrant workers started to return to work as the lunar New Year travel season comes to end.

On Sunday, 89.36 million road passenger trips were made across the country, an increase of 5.7 percent year on year.

Some 7.88 million trips were made via the country's railway network on Saturday, bringing the number of total trips to 201.87 million during "chunyun," the peak travel period surrounding traditional Spring Festival.

This year's "chunyun" began on Jan 16 and will end on Feb 24. The Lantern Festival, which fell on Feb 14 this year, normally marks the end of the two-week lunar new year celebrations.

Although "chunyun" is nearing its end, railway authorities expected the number of daily train trips to remain high until Feb. 24 due to a growing number of trips made by students and workers.

Chinese migrant workers usually return to their hometown to mark the lunar New Year and look for new jobs following the holiday.