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Speakers:

Xu Chengguang, deputy director of the 2023 Spring Festival Transportation Special Group and vice minister of transport

Chen Kai, deputy director of the State Post Bureau

Wan Xiangdong, chief pilot of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC)

Huang Xin, director of the Passenger Transport Department of China Railway

Cai Tuanjie, deputy director of the Office of the 2023 Spring Festival Transportation Special Group and director general of the Transport Service Department of the Ministry of Transport (MOT)

Chairperson:

Xing Huina, deputy director general of the Press Bureau of the State Council Information Office (SCIO) and SCIO spokesperson

Date:

Jan. 6, 2023

Xing Huina:

Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to this press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO). Today, we are joined by Mr. Xu Chengguang, deputy director of the 2023 Spring Festival Transportation Special Group and vice minister of transport. Mr. Xu will brief you on the work to ensure services during the Spring Festival travel rush and take your questions. Also joining us today are Mr. Chen Kai, deputy director of the State Post Bureau; Mr. Wan Xiangdong, chief pilot of the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC); Mr. Huang Xin, director of the Passenger Transport Department of China Railway; and Mr. Cai Tuanjie, deputy director of the Office of the 2023 Spring Festival Transportation Special Group and director general of the Transport Service Department of the Ministry of Transport (MOT).

Now, I'll give the floor to Mr. Xu Chengguang for a brief introduction.

Xu Chengguang:

Ladies and gentlemen, friends from the media, good morning. It is my pleasure to meet with you here. To begin with, I would like to thank the friends from the media for their interest in the plans regarding the Spring Festival travel rush and their support for our work concerning transportation. Today, my colleagues, Mr. Chen, Mr. Wan, Mr. Huang, Mr. Cai, and I will brief you on the measures to ensure transportation services during the 2023 Spring Festival.

The Spring Festival travel rush in 2023 is the first of its kind since the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and also the first since China's COVID-19 response entered a new stage. The CPC Central Committee and the State Council have attached great importance to it. The matter has drawn widespread attention from all sectors of society, and the people are looking forward to it. To ensure a smooth Spring Festival travel rush, we will follow the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, fully implement the guiding principles of the 20th CPC National Congress, and put people and their lives first. We will better coordinate epidemic prevention and control measures with economic and social development. We will meet people's needs for a better travel experience and maintain normal economic and social order, regard them as our fundamental missions, and make every effort to ensure steady and orderly operation during the upcoming Spring Festival travel rush.

The Spring Festival travel rush this year will last for 40 days, running from Jan. 7 to Feb. 15. Compared with previous years, passenger flows and the pandemic situation have reached peak levels simultaneously in 2023, making the upcoming travel rush the most uncertain, complicated and challenging in recent years. In general, this year's Spring Festival travel rush has the following four features. First, passenger flows will increase significantly. As China has classified and also treated COVID-19 as a category B infectious disease, more people will engage in cross-regional travel at an accelerated pace. In addition, people's demand for returning to their hometowns during Chinese New Year, visiting friends and family, and traveling will be unleashed collectively. As a result, passenger flows during the upcoming Spring Festival will recover from a long-term low level and see rapid increase, while transportation organizations will operate at full capacity. According to preliminary analysis, around 2.095 billion passenger trips will be made during this year's Spring Festival travel rush, up 99.5% year on year, which will recover to 70.3% of the same period in 2019. In terms of the structure of passenger flows, it is estimated that family visits will account for 55% of the total passenger flows, work-related travel 24%, and tourism and business trips 10% each. As many universities and colleges started their winter vacations before the travel rush, students will account for a relatively small proportion of passengers compared with previous years. More people will choose to travel by driving, using intercity car-pooling services, and taking chartered buses . Estimates suggest that expressways nationwide will report an average daily flow of 26.2 million passenger cars, up 3.6% year on year. In terms of the times and places people will travel, it is expected that before the Spring Festival, the majority of people will travel from large cities to nearby cities and provinces that are major exporters of labor. As family visits and work-related travel are to overlap, passenger flows will report growth. After the Spring Festival, people will travel from major labor exporting provinces and small- and medium-sized cities to central cities. Passenger flows during this period will be relatively staggered and reach peaks on around Jan. 27 and Feb. 6. Second, the demand for freight transport will rise significantly. The Spring Festival travel rush in previous years has often seen an increase in passenger flows and decrease in freight transport. However, as the pandemic situation is set to reach peak levels during the upcoming Spring Festival, the freight volume of all sorts of medical supplies and preventative materials, daily necessities for the holidays, and key materials such as energy and food for winter and spring will surge. In particular, in small- and medium-sized cities and rural regions with poor logistics infrastructure, parcel delivery may be delayed in certain areas as front-line delivery workers will return to their hometowns and possible large-scale infections will cause personnel shortages. Therefore, we will face mounting pressure in coordinating passenger flow with freight transport during the Spring Festival travel rush and ensuring the smooth operation of both. Third, front-line workers are at a greater risk of infection. The Spring Festival travel rush will see intensive passenger flow and frequent freight transport. As such highly-efficient transport activities overlap with the peak of the pandemic, the risk of large-scale infection among front-line transportation workers will surge, and there will be greater pressure to ensure unimpeded services of passenger flows and freight transport. Fourth, risks and hidden dangers concerning workplace safety will increase. Since 2020, due to the repeated impact of the pandemic, China's transport sector has been facing a complicated situation where the risks of traffic safety and pandemic-related incidents intertwined. Particularly, the sector has been operating at a low capacity for a long period; vehicles have either been out of service or operating at a low capacity for a long time; the working skills of employees in the field have been getting rusty; and there are often more traffic accidents around Chinese New Year due to frequent severe weather conditions such as low temperatures, cold fronts, rain, snow and sleet. All of these pose severe challenges to workplace safety. In order to strengthen the management of workplace safety, prevent major accidents, effectively respond to emergencies and ensure people's safe traveling experience, all levels of the transportation sector should make more greater efforts.

It is worth noting that this year's Spring Festival travel rush is marked by many uncertainties, making it difficult to rely on past experience to analyze and assess the situation according to established rules. The current projections on the total volume, composition, and direction of passenger flow are based on current circumstances. They are intended to consider worst-case scenarios, make more solid preparations, and provide better services in accordance with bottom-line thinking. This will allow us to be fully prepared for epidemic prevention and control and transport service guarantees during the Spring Festival travel rush. We will closely track the situation, continuously study and assess it, and promptly optimize and adjust our measures to ensure sound transportation services during the Spring Festival.

Facing these challenges and pressures, the Party Central Committee and the State Council have put forward three precise requirements of "meeting the travel needs of the people, reducing the risk of COVID-19 transmission, and providing safe and convenient services." Leading comrades of the Central Committee have repeatedly issued important instructions and made clear requirements. Transport departments at all levels have made adequate preparations in accordance with the "highest standards, strictest requirements, and most practical measures." At the national level, with the approval of the State Council joint prevention and control mechanism, a special task force on Spring Festival travel rush was set up under the State Council joint prevention and control mechanism, led by the MOT and involving 16 ministries and units. A series of documents have been issued, including the Overall Work Plan for Epidemic Prevention and Control and Transportation Service Guarantee during the 2023 Spring Festival Travel Rush. In addition, a series of specific measures have been formulated, such as guidelines for epidemic prevention and control during the Spring Festival travel rush. A national television and telephone conference was held to systematically deploy the work. Regions and relevant departments have also made specific arrangements according to the deployment of the Spring Festival travel rush task force. At present, all preparations are basically in place.

The annual Spring Festival travel rush is always a big test for transport authorities, but this year's "exam" may prove even more challenging. General Secretary Xi Jinping said that when faced with major and difficult tasks, one's sense of responsibility and bravery in taking on the challenge is tested. All transportation workers fully understand the extreme importance of doing a good job in ensuring sound transportation services during the Spring Festival this year. We consider providing transportation services during this year's Spring Festival as an important test for implementing the spirit of the 20th CPC National Congress. To ensure that people travel safely and successfully during the Spring Festival, we will utilize our maximum capacity and provide the best services and conditions to create a safe, healthy, convenient, and comfortable transportation experience. We will do our utmost to ensure that the "first" and "last" kilometers of the journey home are smooth and organized, with a sense of responsibility to work hard for the benefit of the public and with a determination to collaborate and support each other. In this way, we aim to contribute to a peaceful and joyful Spring Festival for the people and to give a satisfactory answer to the Party and the people.

That's all for my introduction! Now, my colleagues and I would like to take your questions. Thank you!