Students join annual Spring Festival travel rush

China's annual Spring Festival peak travel season officially kicked off on Saturday. This year, 225 million passenger journeys are expected to roll along Chinese railways during the 40 day travel rush - some ten million more than last year. CCTV reporter Li Nan went along to Beijing West Railway Station, to meet one student travelling back home.

Sunday afternoon and Chen Ziming is waiting at Beijing West Railway Station. She's a postgraduate student at Renmin University of China.

Now it's time for the studying to end, and the reunions to begin. The train leaves for her hometown of Changsha at 6:00 pm.

Chen Ziming, female, Chinese, said, "This is my second year in Beijing. I normally take part-time jobs during summer breaks. So spring festival is the only time I can see my family."

CCTV reporter Li Nan, Beijing, said, "Saturday was the first day of China's spring festival travel rush. On that day from Beijing's West Railway Station alone, 150 thousand people have left the capital city. Many of them are students who just started their winter break. They are rushing back home for family reunion. "

Buying train tickets during peak travel periods is always difficult. Queues can be long and sometimes patience runs short. But Chen says being a student has its advantages.

Chen ziming said, "We have a longer winter holiday than working people, so our travel times are more flexible. And this year we can buy tickets from the internet. I bought my ticket online. For me, it's been a lot easier than last year."

According to China's Ministry of Railways, students are entitled to a 25 percent ticket discount for high-speed train and 50 percent on ordinary train, during Spring Festival Rush.

They also enjoy a much longer pre-selling period.

That's enough to give the millions of students like Chen a valuable edge in getting a ticket-to-ride, for the world's biggest human migration.