rki.news | Sources: Xinhua
China witnessed an estimated 845.38 million passenger trips during the three-day Qingming Festival holiday, up 6 percent year on year, according to transportation authorities. The daily average of trips reached 281.79 million, the Ministry of Transport reported on Monday.
Road travel dominated, with 778.45 million trips, up 5.8 percent from last year. Railway journeys totaled 57.68 million, an 8.2 percent increase, while waterway transport handled about 3.7 million trips, up 9.8 percent. Civil aviation saw a slight decline, carrying approximately 5.5 million passengers, down 1.3 percent.
The travel surge was driven by the overlap of Qingming Festival with spring breaks for primary and secondary school students, encouraging family trips and parent-child tours. On the holiday’s first day, expressway traffic exceeded 62.67 million vehicles, including over 14 million new energy vehicles, boosting spending at scenic spots, hotels, and car rentals.
Returning home for tomb-sweeping and rural tourism also stimulated activity in towns and villages, extending consumption beyond major cities. Passenger cars with seven seats or fewer were exempted from expressway tolls, while transport departments increased capacity, extended operating hours, and improved services for new energy vehicles at key locations and expressway service areas.