Railways Serve Over 18.55 Million Passengers as Road Traffic Exceeds 63 Million Trips

China is now in the middle of its five‑day May Day holiday, which began on Friday. On Sunday, the third day of the break, travel demand across the country remains high. Passenger traffic is being driven by short‑ and medium‑distance trips, while expressways around popular tourist cities are experiencing severe congestion. Here is the story — as reported by ССTV+.

According to the national railway operator, on Sunday railways are expected to serve 18.55 million passengers, and 923 additional trains have been added to meet demand.

In southern regions, where rainfall has intensified, railway authorities are working closely with meteorological services — monitoring weather conditions and adjusting operations in real time to ensure safe and smooth travel.

Highways are also under pressure. The Ministry of Transport forecasts that traffic on the national expressway network will exceed 63 million trips. Short‑distance journeys dominate, and congestion is particularly notable around major tourist destinations such as Beijing, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Xi’an, Changsha and Chongqing.

To ease traffic pressure, transport authorities have deployed additional staff, expanded the number of emergency evacuation points, and introduced accelerated procedures for handling traffic accidents and compensation payments.

The ministry also predicts 2.16 million passenger trips on waterways on Sunday — an increase of 0.5 percent compared to the same period last year. For safety reasons, authorities have strengthened oversight of popular night cruises and excursion routes with heavy passenger flows.