Heilongjiang trains ready for festival rush

New lines, new services designed to make travel more efficient and more pleasant

Shi Xinhao was feeling slightly excited as he waited for his train at the Harbin Railway station to travel to Hegang city on Jan 8, the second day of the annual Spring Festival travel rush.

The 39-year-old, who runs a business in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, had just spent a weeklong holiday in Harbin, the Heilongjiang provincial capital famous for its winter tourism. He was returning to his home of Hegang, which is also in Heilongjiang, by high-speed train.

"It is not as crowded as I'd imagined," he said. "I haven't been home for three years, and I really missed getting together with my family during the Spring Festival."

This year's travel rush started on Jan 7 and will end on Feb 15. The festival itself falls on Jan 22, and travel usually peaks before and after the seven-day holiday.

About 6.23 million passengers trips are expected to be made on lines operated by the China Railway Harbin Group during the 40-day period, a year-on-year increase of 38.3 percent and the largest number of trips in the three years since the COVID-19 epidemic began, the group said.

Rail lines under the group's management cover most of Heilongjiang, as well as Hulun Buir city in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

To ensure smooth service for passengers, the group has taken a series of proactive measures.

Using data from the 12306 ticket booking and query system, it is able to analyze travel trends and arrange sufficient services to meet transportation demands.

Up to 286 pairs of trains will be in operation every day during the peak period, the group said.

Extra passenger services to popular destinations — including Beijing, Tianjin and Qingdao in Shandong province — will be incorporated in the schedule, and the group plans to take advantage of newly opened lines to improve efficiency and capacity.

The Jiamusi-Hegang High-Speed Railway, which entered operation in late December and makes use of a new Fuxing bullet train model, will greatly increase transport capacity.

The group will run eight pairs of trains along the line, which passengers can take to transfer to trains running to Beijing, Dalian in Liaoning province, Xining in Qinghai province and other destinations through Harbin without changing platforms, making journeys more convenient.

To improve the travel experience, the group has launched a series of measures, including optimizing preferential tickets, providing more detailed information and expanding the range of meals that can be ordered online.

"We have removed a restriction on college students being able to purchase tickets only during the winter and summer vacations, and they can purchase up to four discounted tickets at any time during the school year," said Liu Jian, director of the passenger transport department at Harbin Railway Station.

"Also, we have set up a green channel for migrant workers to help with ticket purchasing, travel information and baggage handling."

To improve dining options, the number of stations able to provide online meals has been increased from 26 to 41, extending coverage to most of the major cities along the line.

Since COVID-19 management was optimized and travel restrictions were lifted last month, nucleic acid test results and health codes are no longer required. However, the group will continue to implement epidemic prevention and control measures at railway stations and on trains, including proper ventilation and disinfection, improving public health information, and opening more gates for ticket and security checks to avoid bottlenecks.

The group has advised passengers to travel at different times to avoid crowding.