Persistent rain and snow fall forced flight cancellations and highway closures in the northeastern and southern parts of China this past weekend, leaving millions of passengers set to go home after the Spring Festival holiday stranded.

On Saturday, Feb. 13, the Dalian International Airport in Dalian, Liaoning province, was forced to cancel or delay over 300 flights, leaving approximately 20,000 passengers stranded. On Sunday, Feb. 14, the airport management reported that operations have resumed and more than 70 flights took off and landed.

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Meanwhile, the provinces of Jilin, Shandong and Hebei also had to bar highways on Saturday because of the snow, while Zhejiang and Fujian struggled with heavy rain.

With the number of flights cancelled and roads blocked, many passengers in northeast China flocked to demand for refunds and opted to travel by train. One passenger identified only by her surname Yang, said "I had no other option but to choose the railway, as I need to rush back to work." Yang was supposed to board her 11 PM flight on Saturday, but the flight was cancelled because of the blizzard.

China Railway Corp. was expecting to make over 10 million trips on railways on Sunday, a number slightly lower than Saturday's 10.3 million. According to the company, over 60 percent of the trains catering to the Spring Rush are of high-speed services, with a capacity to run at 300 kilometres per hour. The country has the biggest high-speed railway network in the world, covering 19,000 kilometres.

Nangchang Railway Station deputy director Zhou Yuan said that together with the establishment of high-speed railways, stations have also significantly improved. Riding a train is way more convenient now than it was a decade ago, as online booking systems and self-service ticketing machines have been launched so people can ditch the long lines, waiting areas have also been enlarged.

Between Jan. 24 and Feb. 12, the Ministry of Transportation reported that nearly 140 million trips were made via the railway, road, water and air. The yearly Spring Festival is a period of mass migration with millions of people coming home to celebrate the Lunar New Year with their loved ones. 

Tagschina, Holiday rush, Spring festival