More Convenient Transportation

Chinas annual Spring Festival travel rush， or chunyun， which occurs during the weeks just prior to and following the festival， is a daunting task for the countrys transport systems， as hundreds of millions of Chinese people return to their hometowns for family reunion and then head back to their places of residence after the holiday. This year， Spring Festival falls on January 28， and the official public holiday runs from January 27 to February 2.

China has stepped up construction of its transportation networks over the past few decades， and its transport systems have undergone tremendous transformation.

A white paper titled Development of Chinas Transport shows that the nation had the worlds longest networks of high-speed railway （19，000 km） and expressway （123，500 km） at the end of 2015. Passenger numbers and cargo volume carried by rail， road and water transportation in China in 2015 were higher than those in any other country， while the countrys civil aviation sector handled the second largest passenger， cargo and mail volumes of any such national network worldwide.

The advancement of technology is the key to transportation improvement. Chinas technologies for building high-speed and standard railways in extreme climatic environments and railways designed to transport super heavy loads have taken the lead worldwide. In constructing the Qinghai-Tibet Railway， for example， the country overcame difficult environmental conditions at high altitudes. High-speed railways， in particular， have become a new name card for madein-China products and are spearheading the nations hi-tech exports. China has also built a number of world-class mega bridges and tunnels. Its key technologies for building offshore deep-water ports and large airports are also among the most advanced in the world.

Currently， transport development is transitioning from satisfying basic demands for moving people and goods to providing more comfortable， convenient and efficient services that are safer and eco-friendly.

Besides satisfying domestic needs， China is also contributing to the development of transportation infrastructure worldwide. The nations transport sector is actively going global by increasing international transport connectivity. By the end of 2015， Chinese railways had connected with rail networks in five of its 14 neighboring countries. There are also cargo train services between China and Central Asia and Central Europe. At present， China is stepping up cooperation with countries along the routes of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road to promote transportation infrastructure interconnectivity and facilitate the international movement of people and goods.

In future， Chinas more convenient and comfortable transportation networks will undoubtedly shorten the distance between itself and the wider world.