SNOW SLOWS TRAVEL
During the traditional 40-day period that runs before, during and after the Lunar New Year holidays in mainland China, about 9 billion interprovincial passenger trips on all forms of transport are expected to be made.
Train and air travel are expected to “hit record highs” during this year’s migration, state news agency Xinhua said.
In South Korea, heavy snowfall caused disruption to train, plane and bus schedules nationwide, as people went to visit their families in the countryside this week.
Passengers were seen at Seoul’s main train station carrying gifts wrapped in colourful cloth and luggage as they prepared to leave the capital.
Images released by local media showed vehicles covered in snow stuck on South Korea’s major highways as heavy winds and snowfall persisted.
Traffic authorities warned it could take more than seven hours on Tuesday to drive from Seoul to the country’s port city of Busan, a journey that typically takes around four hours.
Many others opted to spend the break abroad. The operator of Incheon International Airport announced that more than 2.1 million passengers were expected to use the airport to travel overseas from Jan 24 to Feb 2.
“This is projected to be the highest average daily passenger count during the Lunar New Year holiday since the airport opened (in 2001),” the operator said in a statement.
The festivities even extended to space, with Chinese astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze sending New Year’s Eve greetings from the Tiangong space station on Tuesday.
In a video released by the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), the trio could be seen dressed in blue jumpsuits with traditional red cloud patterns, holding two pieces of paper-cutting featuring the Chinese character “fu”, for good luck.
“In the new year, may all your dreams come true,” Wang said, forming a heart shape above her head.
