Holiday highlights planning criticisms
8 May 2007
Some 5.2 million people took a train in China on May 1 and set a record for a single day during a holiday, the South China Morning Post reported, quoting state media. As millions of people jammed into train stations and airports to visit family and later to return to work, criticisms once again rose against the policy that puts the entire population on holiday at the same time. Some 4.9 million people traveled by train and the numbers for Monday, the last day of the holiday, were expected to top that. The crowds and the sharp increases in road traffic have proven to be dangerous. Online commentaries called on the government to eliminate the golden weeks and allow people to pick their own holidays throughout the year.