In the days and weeks before Chinese New Year , some 700 million people — twice the entire universe of the U.S.—cram onto trains , buses , airplane and boats to go home . This mass migration is the largest annual bowel movement of human beings in the globe , and now it can betracked by smartphone .
For the preceding twain eld , Chinese internet giant Baidu has describe the travel of people using its smartphone single-valued function . Big industrial city like Beijing , Shanghai , and Shenzhen ignite up as major hub .
What ’s less obvious in Baidu ’s visualization , though , is the direction people are going . During Chinese New Year , big cities becomeempty , near - ghost towns , as million of migrants proletarian riposte home for the holidays . There ’s a expression in Chinese : 有钱没钱回家过年 , or which roughly translates to “ ample or pitiful , go home for the new yr . ” For migrant workers , the seven-day vacation around Chinese New Year is often the only chance for them to see the parents and child they left behind in rural villages .
traveler waiting in line outside of Beijing ’s train place on Tuesday , February 17 , 2015 . AP Photo / Andy Wong
Of course , this massive and lopsided migration puts a huge strain on the China ’s transportation infrastructure . The China ’s National Development and Reform Commission estimates that3.62 billion tripsare made in the 40 solar day around the lunar Modern year .
The biggest crush is on the railways , as most Chinese can not afford to fell or drive . impermanent geartrain arepressed into service . Temporary ticket stations spring up . In spite of these measures , people with stand tickets are carry onto trains until there ’s scarce way to move . You even get the episodic story aboutadult diaper salespeaking before the holiday travel time of year , as travelers tuck in for their long - catch journey .
Temporary ticket place in Hefei for Chinese New Year traveling . quotation : Vmenkov / CC
And that ’s only one-half of it . After the holiday , which is on February 19 this year , the entire country embarks on rejoinder journeys , cramming back into the major cities until next yr , when happens all over again .
Top icon : Baidu
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