We are just days away from our extended four-day holiday. While it seems like the perfect opportunity for a family outing, you might want to think twice before heading out. The traffic congestion will likely be a nightmare next week as tourists flock to and from Shanghai, reports Shine.
This year, the Shanghai Road Administration Bureau will continue to grant free usage of the city's expressways to all small vehicles (cars with a maximum of seven seats) during the Labor Day holiday. As a result, the number of vehicles taking expressways is expected to spike.
On April 30, the day before the holiday, a total of 2.25 million vehicles is predicted to be on the expressways, an increase of 3.4% from last year. Another surge will occur on May 4, when most tourists will return to the city. On that day, approximately 1.57 million vehicles will take the expressways.
Therefore, we suggest avoiding peak hours and popular routes. Otherwise, you might end up spending the holiday on the expressways.
Image via Xinmin
Apart from traveling by car, public transportation like trains and planes are popular among tourists as well. For a limited time during May and June, Shanghai South Railway Station will add three brand new train lines to accommodate the number of tourists for the Labor Day and Dragon Boat Festival holidays.
Since this year's holiday is much longer than usual, a large number of people are choosing to take the time to travel to neighboring countries. As a result, many airline tickets have sold out. The hottest destinations include Thailand, Japan and Singapore. "The popularity of the tickets next week reminds me of Chunyun," a staff working at an airline company commented.
[Cover image via Wikipedia]