"Ever since the start of the first Peach Blossom Festival on March 22, San shigang county has been receiving over 100,000 visitors each day. The traffic in Hehuai Road, Si Lihe Road and San Guocheng Road has therefore been heavy. We kindly remind you not to come during rush hours." This is the text message many Hefei citizens received in the afternoon of March 23. Hefei is planning a joint conference to further discuss control and service measures for the festival.
All the traffic police in Dayang town and San Shigang town were out providing traffic guidance and travel advice. Every intersection in Hehuai Road and Si Lihe Road had at least three traffic police on duty. Traffic conditions have improved but too many tourists are still causing congestion. Over 100 thousand tourists in one day is a rare number, even in the history of Hefei's tourism.
"With the traffic condition worsening, we have been broadcasting the notice over the 908 Traffic Radio," said a spokesman. They have been reminding tourists not to come to San shigang because of heavy traffic via the radio and Weibo (micro blog)
The official Weibo in Luyang district - "Posted by Luyang", has been broadcasting Peach Blossom Festival real time conditions since March 23. And the emergency office of Hefei has also sent out messages to inform citizens of the situation.
In order to tackle the traffic problem, there were daily meetings last weekend to ensure timely additional help and more comprehensive services. Things got better on Sunday after the implementation of Saturday's adjustments. In adition, citywide traffic control and mitigation are under discussion. There is no detailed plan yet, but there might be additional buses and traffic controls in certain places.
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