More than 50,000 passengers were stranded at a railway station in the Chinese city of Guangzhou yesterday because of weather delays, state media said, an inauspicious start for some as the country embarks upon its annual lunar new year travel rush.
Millions brave long queues, delays, and sold out tickets in the yearly 40-day travel frenzy that bookends China’s Spring Festival, the country’s most important holiday, which this year falls on February 8.
Authorities had taken emergency measures to alleviate the overflow crowds at the Guangzhou Railway Station and “avoid the dangers of overcrowding”, the official Xinhua news agency said.
Media reported that the number of delayed travellers at the station in the southern city had surpassed 100,000 on Monday.
Pictures in state media showed thousands of people crammed into lines outside the station.
Rare heavy snow in several eastern and central provinces had contributed to delays, slowing down trains and blocking roads.
Xinhua has said the country is bracing for record levels of passengers this year.
As China’s manufacturing powerhouse, Guangdong is a major hub for the vast numbers of migrant workers who leave their homes in the countryside to labour in factories.
Many only return home once a year, when tradition dictates that all family members must gather before midnight on the eve of the Lunar New Year.
The phenomenon puts huge pressure on China’s transport infrastructure.
The government estimated that 2.91bn trips would be taken over the holiday’s 40-day travel season, in what is thought to be the largest yearly movement of people in the world.
Much of China was struck by a teeth-chattering cold snap late last month that broke decades-old records, with snow falling in some areas for the first time in years.
The freeze also delayed 55 trains at a station in Shanghai, forcing around 30,000 travellers to wait for hours on Monday before they could get on board, according to state broadcaster China Central Television.
Guangzhou police warned of more train transport chaos to come as the bad weather was expected to continue.
Police urged passengers not to go to railway stations too far ahead of their train’s scheduled departure time to avoid “waiting for overly long time” and “overcrowding the surrounding areas”.