Tens of millions on move as Spring Festival travel season starts

A volunteer guides passengers to their train at Chengdu Railway Station in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, Jan. 7, 2012. Starting from Jan. 8, 2012, China's transport system will undergo a 40-day travel rush, which is characterized by a hightened passenger flow around the time of the oncoming Chinese New Year. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)

Passengers queue to buy tickets at the railway station in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Jan. 7, 2012. China's railways will carry 235 million passengers during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, up 6.1 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Railways said Friday. A daily average of 5.88 million people will make trains trips from Jan. 8 to Feb. 16, according to the website of the ministry. (Xinhua/Wang Peng)

A passenger shoulders his luggage as he waits to board a train at Chengdu Railway Station in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, Jan. 7, 2012. Starting from Jan. 8, 2012, China's transport system will undergo a 40-day travel rush, which is characterized by a hightened passenger flow around the time of the oncoming Chinese New Year. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)

Two passengers walk on the platform of Chengdu Railway Station in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, Jan. 7, 2012. Starting from Jan. 8, 2012, China's transport system will undergo a 40-day travel rush, which is characterized by a hightened passenger flow around the time of the oncoming Chinese New Year. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)

A boy carries his luggage at Shanghai Railway Station in Shanghai, east China, Jan. 7, 2012. China's railways will carry 235 million passengers during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, up 6.1 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Railways said Friday. A daily average of 5.88 million people will make trains trips from Jan. 8 to Feb. 16, according to the website of the ministry. (Xinhua/Pei Xin)

Sixteen-month-old Wang Yanru is held by her mother at the ticket booths at Shanghai Railway Station in Shanghai, east China, Jan. 7, 2012. China's railways will carry 235 million passengers during the 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, up 6.1 percent year-on-year, the Ministry of Railways said Friday. A daily average of 5.88 million people will make trains trips from Jan. 8 to Feb. 16, according to the website of the ministry. (Xinhua/Pei Xin)

Passengers wait in their compartment before the train pulls out of Chengdu Railway Station in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province, Jan. 7, 2012. Starting from Jan. 8, 2012, China's transport system will undergo a 40-day travel rush, which is characterized by a hightened passenger flow around the time of the oncoming Chinese New Year. (Xinhua/Xue Yubin)

BEIJING, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- China started the Spring Festival peak travel season Sunday, with tens of millions of passengers, mainly migrant workers and college students, on the move in the world's largest seasonal migration.

The Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New Year, fall on Jan. 23 this year. It is the most important traditional Chinese festival for family reunions.

A total of 3.16 billion passenger trips are expected during the 40-day peak travel season, or Chunyun (Spring transportation) in Chinese, up 9.1 percent from a year earlier, according to the National Development and Reform Commission.