A child in Korla train station, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, Jan 24. [Photo/CFP]

AMID THE record-breaking cold weather, China's annual travel rush during the Spring Festival period officially began on Sunday. Gmw.cn praises the railway, aviation and highway authorities' efforts to guarantee that all travelers arrive home safe and sound, but calls for more concerted cooperation to meet the needs of travellers:

With the overall passenger volume nationwide expected to reach 2.91 billion in less than 40 days, approximately 3.6 percent higher than that of last year, transportation departments at all levels are trying their best to pass the annual "Spring Festival test".

Despite the low temperatures across most of the country and the ever-increasing passenger volume, the railway, aviation and highway authorities have all significantly increased their capacity.

At least 3,142 pairs of passenger trains, 846,000 coaches, 20,000 ships, and 520,000 flights are operating. That should be enough to make sure all travelers get home. However, the transportation departments should also coordinate and cooperate closely, even though they are competitors in a way. In particular, they should prioritize combined transport services to offer passengers more options to optimize their schedules.

Another highlight this year has been the introduction of targeted punishments for offences such as overloading passengers, dangerous driving, bidding up ticket prices, and speculative reselling of tickets.

In other words, not only will the seasonal scalpers be punished, but ill-behaved drivers and passengers will also be held accountable for violating relevant laws. More importantly, their misbehavior will be made public, which may have a deterrent effect as it could affect their future lives.