A courier delivers a food order for passengers to an attendent on a high-speed train in Chongqing on Feb 9, 2018.[Photo/Xinhua] Airports and train stations in major cities introduce advanced technology, upgraded facilities The rapid expansion of China's road, rail and air networks has solved most of the traditional problems associated with travel during Spring Festival, such as the fierce competition for tickets and traffic gridlock. Now, the country's transportation authorities are focusing on passenger comfort and convenience. An estimated 2.98 billion journeys are expected to be made during this year's 40 day Spring Festival travel rush, which runs from Feb 1 to March 12, according to the National Development and Reform Commission. The prefestival peak has already approached. According to China Railway Corp, since Feb 1, the national railways handled 89 million trips by Saturday. Leading the way are airports and train stations in major cities, where advanced technology and upgraded facilities have helped remove some of the stress from traveling home or abroad for Lunar New Year, which this year falls on Feb 16. Shen Peilan has had a habit of missing trains and flights in the past, so she would regularly leave her home in Wangjing, northeast Beijing, three hours before her departure time to make sure she made it to her seat in time. On Tuesday, however, when she plans to catch a flight home to Shanghai for the holidays, she will leave just 90 minutes before. It'll be a bit of a rush, but the fast lane at Beijing Capital International Airport and the'QR code boarding pass' will save me lots of time, the 32-year-old interpreter said. Beijing Capital International Airport, the country's busiest, has opened an express lane for passengers traveling to Shanghai, while those who check-in online will be able to simply present a QR code to pass security checks and the boarding gate. I've done online check-in before using the QR code and I haven't missed any flights, Shen said. It's very fast, and there's no waiting in lines. It cuts out some of the boredom. Air China, the nation's flagship carrier, opened eight self check-in baggage desks at Beijing Capital International Airport last month to improve efficiency. They allow passengers on selected services to check their own luggage by putting it on a conveyor belt with no need to line up. The airline also granted travelers on certain air routes at 22 airports worldwide the right to use QR codes on board instead of printed boarding passes. Around 65 million of those journeys will be completed by air, a 10 percent year-on-year growth. Good news for those who like to choose their entertainment or chat with faraway friends mid-flight is that the Civil Aviation Authority of China announced in January that passengers are now allowed to use mobile devices on airplanes. Several carriers, including Hainan Airlines and China-Southern Airlines, have said they will be lifting the ban on smartphones. On the ground, airports are also adding features to make journeys more enjoyable, particularly for parents. Beijing Capital International Airport has set up mother-and-infant rooms equipped with sinks, singlehand operation tables and breastfeeding chairs. Each terminal also has themed play areas to help parents keep their children entertained. Train stations will as usual see a lot more traffic than airports this Spring Festival. The NDRC estimates more than 390 million journeys will be made by rail, up by 8.8 percent compared with the same period last year. China Railway Corp, the national rail operator, launched several measures to improve services and benefit travelers. For example, the official 12306.cn ticket booking system increased the daily sales capability to 15 million tickets from 10 million tickets this year. Catering services have also been upgraded. As well as purchasing food on the train, passengers have been able to order food from station restaurants to be delivered to their seat as soon as the train pulls into the station since mid 2017. However, now the minimum order time has been halved to just one hour before delivery, while the meal options have been increased. Waiting passengers also enjoy better services at train stations. Zhang Chengbin, a construction worker in Guangzhou, has returned to Chongqing every year in the past 10 spring festivals. Each year, he boarded a train at the Guangzhou South Station during the travel rush and has witnessed the change of the station. The station's environment becomes better and the service improves, such as the new nursing room and playground, he said, while watching his two grandchildren playing at the station's amusement playground, which had a slide and rocking horses. Without the nursing room and playground, it was difficult to manage two children, he said. figured wristbandevent wristbandsplain black silicone wristbandscrossfit silicone wristbandscolor-filled-wristbanddebossed-wristbandrubber band braceletspaw print silicone braceletsprinted wristbandsmiscarriage awareness silicone bracelets
The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. [Photo/VCG] Important contributors to the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge said they felt a sense of pride and accomplishment upon hearing State leaders' recognition of the mega project on Tuesday. They said the ceremony was a perfect souvenir for their more than 10 years of contributions to the 55-kilometer sea span. And they look forward to seeing the bridge bring benefits to the public. Lin Ming, 61, chief engineer and general manager for the bridge's island and tunnel project, met with President Xi Jinping at the bridge's east artificial island after the ceremony. He was among the 20 representatives of the bridge's 50,000 builders. He said all were touched by Xi's expressions of appreciation for all their hard work and his recognition of the bridge's quality and value. Quoting Xi, who described the bridge as a key instrument of the nation, Lin said he felt the president knew the project really well and his compliments came from the bottom of his heart. Having spent about 12 years on the bridge's most technically challenging section, Lin said Xi's recognition gave him a sense of life accomplishment. It was worth all my endeavors on the project, he said. Su Yi, finance department manager and assistant to the director of the bridge operator - the HZMB Authority - said the ceremony demonstrated that the country has attached great importance to the bridge, as two State leaders attended and the ceremony was officiated by a national-level official. Noting that all the top officials at the ceremony had mentioned the bridge's importance to the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Su said what is really crucial is how it can serve as a platform to spur more cross-border exchanges and coordination, and stimulate more policy-level breakthroughs in the area as a whole. No matter what, with the bridge opening, the concept of a one-hour living circle was no longer just empty talk, Su said. Having worked on the bridge for 14 years, Su - who also serves as head of the bridge's Working Group on Cross-boundary Policy Research - acknowledged that there is still room to simplify cross-border policies between the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions and the mainland, such as quotas for cross-border vehicles and immigration and customs procedures. He said the group will review policies and traffic volume on a regular basis, and gradually relax restrictions to better serve the public's needs. Traffic will start flowing over the bridge on Wednesday. Su said he wants to know whether the current policies are convenient enough for passengers and how heavy actual traffic volume will be after all the research and forecasts. Su estimated that in the first year of operation, the bridge would handle about 10,000 vehicles and 50,000 passenger trips daily. Liu Xiaodong, a major designer of the whole project and the chief designer of the island and tunnel section, agreed with Su. Liu said top leaders' sincere compliments had brought his 14 years of work to a perfect end. Next, he hopes the bridge will provide the public with convenient and quality transport, as it was envisioned to do. He also hoped it would be well utilized to promote economic development within the Bay Area. He also hoped the bridge will be well maintained and managed, keeping it in good condition as long as possible. Liu was also the chief designer of the Shenzhen Bay Bridge, which opened in 2007 and connected Shenzhen with Hong Kong. He hoped all the experience he collected in the construction and management of the two cross-border projects will be well preserved.
