A conductor helps passengers with heavy luggages onboard the L199 train heading for Guiyang at Hangzhou Railway Station, eastern China's Zhejiang Provine, in this photo dated Jan 7, 2005.

More than 1,800 migrant labourers working in Zhejiang and the neighbouring Jiangsu and Anhui provinces took the train to their hometown.

As the Chinese lunar New Year's eve will fall on Feb 8 this year, many migrant workers have started their annual journey home early to avoid the peak days and a raised train fare of at least 15 percent higher than the usual cost around the hottest days.