From Business Week:
Snowstorms shut 30 highways across China, disrupting travel on a day when more than 66 million people were expected to take to the roads for the nation’s biggest festival of the year.
As of 10:00 a.m., highways were closed in five Chinese provinces and Shanghai, China Central Television said, citing the Ministry of Transport. Some 2,000 people were waiting in Nanjing for buses this morning, and others were marooned in cities including Beijing and Shanghai, the state TV channel said.
Snowstorms are likely to hit eastern Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, central Hubei province and southeastern Jiangxi province until Feb. 14, according to the China Meteorological Administration. The storms have closed airports, railways and roads during the 40-day “Chun Yun,” or Spring Festival travel period, when the ministry expected Chinese travelers to make more than 2.5 billion journeys.
China’s Meteorological Administration has warned that more snow will come on the weekend:
“From New Year’s Eve on the 13th, large-scale rain and snow will return,” the agency warned.
“Everyone must make preparations for rain, snow and falling temperatures when returning home or going out to visit relatives and friends,” it added.
Authorities are hoping to avoid a repeat of the chaos seen when a massive cold wave and freezing rain hit southern and central China in 2008, crippling transport systems and stranding millions just as the travel rush got under way.
