More than 7 million people would hit the road during the Spring Festival travel peak, a 3.82-percent increase over the same period last year, a spokesperson with the holiday office of the municipal communications bureau said Thursday.

Of the total travelers, more than 4.26 million will travel by road while 1.64 million by rail, 176,000 by sea and 922,000 by air.

Road transport would still play an important role during the travel peak, holiday office spokesperson Chen Huigang said.

Transport authorities called on potential train travelers to choose other means of transport such as long-distance buses during the travel peak as plenty of buses would be running.

With the implementation of a new policy by the Ministry of Communications this year, many buses from other cities and provinces are expected to join the travel peak transport. The total number of passenger buses to run in the city during the festival is estimated to reach 11,180, of which 6,105 are long-distance buses with a maximum daily capacity of 250,000 passengers.

Train ticket bookings for the Spring Festival have long been a headache for the city government as millions of migrant workers tend to take trains to return home for family reunions becuse they are faster and cheaper. However the city's railway capacity has been far from adequate to meet rising demand.

To crack down on scalpers and for the convenience of traverlers, long-distance train bookings for individuals during the travel peak can only be made by calling 9510-5160. A maximum of three tickets can be booked 10 days ahead with each call using one ID card number.

The Guangzhou-Shenzhen Railway Co. Ltd. has installed 1,000 phone lines to take up to 50,000 bookings an hour.

Group bookings for trains departing between Jan. 20 and 30 can still be made on eticket.gzrail.com.cn before Jan. 8, said a railway spokesperson.

The municipal post bureau opened a free ticket delivery service covering the city's six districts for the first time. People can receive tickets within three days by sending short messages through mobile phones, or by calling 11185. China Mobile users can send messages to 0755185 while CDMA users to 18502. Booking numbers, ticket collection codes and ID card numbers should be provided. Ticket fees should be paid for at any of the 516 agencies in the six districts. Inquiries can be made by calling 11185, or logging onto www.shenzhenpost.com.cn.

To help potential passengers understand ticket bookings and schedules for long-distance trains, buses, ferries and aircraft, 100,000 copies of a travel guide have been printed and will be dispatched to transport stations for free distribution.

About 6.75 million people traveled during the Spring Festival peak last year.

Editor: Catherine