On the 14th, press the start button for the 2025 Spring Festival travel rush. This thick image of the times is ushering in a new chapter.

In 40 days, 9 billion people are expected to flow intertwined and flow on more than 9.6 million square kilometers of land. The number of passengers sent by railways is expected to increase by 5.5% year-on-year, the number of civil aviation passengers is expected to hit a record high in the same period, and self-driving travel accounts for about 80%... At this moment, mobile China is full of vitality.

Why do people pay attention to the Spring Festival travel rush? Because reunion with family is the top priority for Chinese people to celebrate the New Year.

Once upon a time, people carried large and small bags to eat instant noodles in the green car and took a nap. Even if they were tired from the journey, they could not dilute the joy of going home.

Now, on the land of China, the mileage of the national comprehensive three-dimensional transportation network reaches 6 million kilometers, and the business mileage of railways exceeds 160,000 kilometers. All townships and established villages that meet the conditions are open to hardened roads. Cars are driving fast, high-speed rails are flying, planes are flying, and giant ships are sailing. The time and space distance of "home" is getting closer and closer. The diverse and convenient transportation has opened up more new versions of this "world's largest population migration".

——Add to add trains, "There will always be a suitable trip for you." Xiao Chen, who works in Beijing, was surprised to find that he could buy direct high-speed rail tickets to his hometown, Leshan, Sichuan on Railway 12306. "In the past, I had to transfer in Chengdu when I got home, which was a bit troublesome. Now I can choose the night high-speed train that departs during the day or at night, and I can sleep directly when I get on the bus," he said.

The railway department predicts that the number of passengers sent by railways across the country is expected to exceed 510 million during the Spring Festival travel rush, with an average of 12.75 million per day. With such a large passenger volume, how can we transport safely, orderly and efficiently?

Opening the new train operation map, it is not difficult to find that not only has 230 trains added to the passenger train compared with the adjustment map, but the operation plans and structures of multiple areas have been further optimized. At the same time, the China Railway Corporation arranges more than 14,000 passenger trains every day, adds about 500,000 seats, adds temporary passenger trains and night high-speed rails, and ensures the public welfare "slow trains" in remote areas.

"All roads lead to my hometown", many netizens said, "There will always be a train suitable for you."

——The average daily flight is 18,500, "You have new destination orders"

90 million passengers, this is the forecast data for the passenger transport volume of civil aviation during the Spring Festival travel rush, and it may also be a new record. Matching this is the planned average of about 18,500 flights per day in the country, and more destinations.

The passenger flow of traditional popular routes between the four major urban agglomerations of Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei, Yangtze River Delta, Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao and Chengdu-Chongqing is still very concentrated, and is the main channel for civil aviation to ensure the Spring Festival travel rush. The popularity of new "niche" routes by many airlines is also increasing.

From the air ticket booking data, the number of passengers in "ice and snow tours" destinations such as Harbin, Changchun, and Urumqi in the north and "cold tours" destinations such as Haikou and Sanya in the south will all increase significantly. At the same time, air ticket orders for "niche" destinations such as Jilin Yanji have also grown rapidly.

Go to the world of ice and snow, check in at intangible cultural heritage attractions, and enjoy the sunny and beaches by the beach... Many office workers plan to "segment the New Year" this year - go back to their hometown to watch the Spring Festival Gala and have New Year's Eve with their families before New Year's Eve; start the second vacation journey on the first and second day of the New Year, and have a reunion trip.

——Self-driving is firmly the main body, and it is more secure to "leave as you say it"

This year's Spring Festival travel, self-driving travel is firmly the main body, with an estimated 7.2 billion passengers, and the daily peak of highway traffic may hit a record high.

In order to make the "just walk" journey safer and smoother, local public security traffic management departments are working with relevant departments to comprehensively investigate traffic safety hazards for people, vehicles, roads and enterprises, and set up traffic police law enforcement stations in busy traffic points to maximize the police force and emergency response equipment on the road surface.

In recent years, new energy vehicles have developed rapidly, and more people choose to drive new energy vehicles. To alleviate the "charging anxiety", the national highway service areas (including parking areas) have built a total of 33,100 charging piles and 49,300 charging parking spaces, and the proportion of highway service areas with charging facilities has reached 97%. At the same time, provinces such as Sichuan, Hunan, and Xinjiang have also introduced mobile charging robots into highway service areas, and "people look for piles" has become "piles look for people", and the service is more considerate.

Year after year, the Spring Festival travel rush has shown a new "scene". What changes are the number of people that are intertwined and rising, more convenient transportation, and warm and caring services; what remains unchanged is the enthusiasm for family reunion and the warmth of the long journey. (Reporters Huang Yao, Ye Haoming, Fan Xi)

Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, January 14