Cheaper train fare for migrants
(Shenzhen Daily)
Updated: 2005-12-28 09:09

The fare for temporary holiday trains, which are mostly taken by migrant workers, will not rise during the Spring Festival peak, officials with the rail authorities said Monday.

The policy will not cover sleeper passengers or express trains. A railway spokesman said the move is an effort by the Central Government to provide more benefits to migrants.

The number of migrant workers in China is more than all other travelers combined who take trains during the Spring Festival peak. During the travel peak period of 2005, more than half of the temporary holiday train passengers in Guangdong and Jiangxi provinces were migrants.

With the preferential policy in place, a larger number of migrants will be able to take these temporary trains back to their hometowns.

The railway ministry has ordered stations expecting large numbers of migrant passengers to prepare emergency plans ahead of the travel peak. The stations have also been asked to contact local governments to arrange for group train tickets early and offer temporary train services earlier than past years.