Guangdong to see record number of rail passengers

An anticipated historical record number of passengers will travel in Guangdong province during the annual Spring Festival travel rush this year, thanks to a continuous increase in travel demand during the long holiday, according to railway operators.

China Railway Guangzhou Group, a major railway service operator in South China, expects to transport 78.55 million passengers during this year's travel rush, an increase of 3.58 million compared to the previous year, representing a growth of 4.8 percent.

On Monday alone, the first day of the 40-day travel rush, the Guangzhou railway operator transported 1.891 million passengers, representing an 18.4 percent increase compared to the previous year.

According to the railway group, the overall passenger flow before Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 17, will run smoothly. It mainly consists of staggered travel by students, migrant workers, people visiting family, and tourists.

In response to changing passenger flow trends, the railway group has leveraged multiple measures, including adding extra trains outside the regular schedule, operating double-unit high-speed trains, increasing nighttime high-speed train services, and attaching additional carriages to regular-speed trains.

Specifically, 4,459 passenger trains will be operated before the festival, an increase of 405 trains compared to the previous year, with passenger flow mainly concentrated in core cities of the Pearl River Delta such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Dongguan.

After the festival, 4,499 passenger trains will be operated, representing an increase of 403 trains compared to the previous year, with passenger flow primarily concentrated in cities along the line between Guangdong and Hunan provinces.

Responding to a cultural and tourism consumption benefit initiative launched by Guangdong authorities to attract more tourists to spend the Spring Festival holiday in the province, the railway group has planned to increase ticket discounts on 72 passenger trains across eight routes, with discounts as high as 20 percent of the original price.

The discounts aim to reduce travel costs for passengers and encourage off-peak travel through optimized ticket pricing, the railway group said.