Society

China detains 330 for train ticket scalping

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-01-20 19:13

BEIJING - Chinese railway police detained 330 people for scalping train tickets Wednesday, the first day of China's 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, the Ministry of Railways said Thursday.

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The 330 detained were involved in 288 cases of tickets scalping, the ministry said without detailing how many tickets were confiscated.

Railway police also detected more than 15,000 cases of people trying to take dangerous goods aboard trains. They also confiscated 1,101 knives.

The ministry said it has deployed 70,000 railway police along China's 91,000 kilometers of railway, to ensure smooth and safe journeys.

Special staff are in real-time communication with meteorological authorities and emergency plans will be activated in case of threatening weather.

Some 700 million people, or nearly half the nation's population, are expected to travel within the country during the 40-day-long travel period. Some 230 million passenger trips will be taken by train, up about 12.5 percent from last year.

The Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New year, falls on Feb 3 this year. A time for family reunions, it is the most important Chinese festival.