Over 330 Million Cross-Regional Trips Made on First Day of May Day Holiday

On May 2, 2026, the Ministry of Transport released travel data for the first day of the May Day holiday. On May 1, the total cross-regional passenger movement reached 337.47 million trips, up 52.9% from the previous period and 1.4% year-on-year, as pent-up holiday travel demand surged. Intelligent transportation dispatching and big data forecasting systems continued to play a vital role in managing peak passenger flows.

Highway Travel Remains the Dominant Mode

Breaking down the figures by transportation mode, highway passenger movement remained the dominant force in cross-regional travel. On May 1, highway passenger volume reached 308.54 million trips, up 56.1% from the previous period and 1% year-on-year, accounting for 91.4% of all cross-regional movement.

Of that total, non-commercial passenger vehicle travel on expressways and national/provincial highways reached 266.35 million trips, a sharp 64.9% increase from the previous period with a marginal 0.1% year-on-year uptick, reflecting that self-driving remains the preferred mode of holiday travel. Commercial highway passenger volume stood at 42.19 million trips, up 16.5% from the previous period and 6.9% year-on-year.

Notable Growth in Rail and Waterway Travel

Railway passenger volume delivered a strong performance, with 24.844 million trips on May 1, up 25.5% from the previous period and 7.5% year-on-year — one of the highest year-on-year growth rates among all transportation modes. In recent years, China's railway system has steadily advanced intelligent ticketing, AI-powered passenger flow forecasting, and smart station construction, continuously improving its capacity to handle holiday surges.

Waterway passenger volume reached 1.761 million trips, up 100.7% from the previous period and 6.8% year-on-year. The period-on-period doubling highlights robust demand for waterborne tourism and ferry services during the holiday.

Civil Aviation Dips Slightly; Parcel Deliveries Remain Elevated

By contrast, civil aviation passenger volume came in at 2.325 million trips, down 2.3% from the previous period and 0.9% year-on-year — a modest decline. Analysts suggest that some travelers may have departed before the holiday began, and the continued diversion effect of high-speed rail on short- and medium-haul routes makes minor fluctuations in aviation data a normal occurrence.

On the logistics front, the national postal industry collected 446 million parcels on the day, down 14.4% from the previous period, while 517 million parcels were delivered, down 9.8%. Although shipping demand eased during the holiday, overall delivery volumes remained at a relatively high level, with intelligent sorting and autonomous delivery technologies continuing to ensure logistics efficiency.

Smart Transportation Technologies Power Holiday Travel

Notably, in the face of over 330 million single-day trips, transportation authorities across the country extensively deployed AI-powered big data analytics, intelligent signal control, and real-time traffic condition forecasting to precisely manage congestion on key road segments and around popular scenic areas. Expressway management platforms in multiple provinces have integrated AI prediction models capable of issuing congestion warnings hours in advance, effectively improving traffic flow efficiency and safety.

As the May Day holiday continues, travel and return passenger volumes are expected to remain elevated in the coming days. Transportation authorities will continue leveraging intelligent technologies for capacity allocation and safety assurance to ensure smooth and orderly holiday travel.