China expects sharp drop in holiday travel due to Covid outbreaks

[BEIJING] China's transport ministry expects a 20 per cent drop in road traffic and a 55 per cent fall in flights during the 3-day Qingming holiday due to a flare-up of Covid-19 cases in the country.

More than 27 Chinese provinces and regions have recently reported coronavirus cases, mostly the highly transmissible Omicron variant, forcing the authorities to impose stringent mobility restrictions or even city-wide lockdowns.

Chinese typically travel back to their home towns to worship their ancestors during the tomb-sweeping festival.

The average daily number of vehicles on the roads are estimated to reach 39-40 million during the holiday, which kicks off on Apr 3, down 21 per cent from the same period last year, according to a statement from the Ministry of Transport.

The number of planned flights was forecast to decrease by 55 per cent this holiday from the year before, with air travellers also at only 20 per cent of last year's levels, the ministry said.

China on Sunday (Apr 3) reported a total of 13,287 new daily cases for Apr 2, the highest level since February 2020.

The country's "dynamic clearance" Covid policy has dampened consumption of transportation fuels in China. The 2-stage lockdown in financial hub of Shanghai, starting from Mar 28, could reduce fuel demand by 200,000 barrels per day.

Authorities across China have also implemented anti-Covid measures at entertainment sites during the Qingming holiday, including limiting the number of tourists and requesting for negative nucleic testing results from inter-provincial travellers. REUTERS