Activities such as producing fake transportation tickets and selling tickets for illegal profits will be severely punished, said Liu Zhijun, vice-minister of railways, at a national teleconference on Spring Festival Transportation being held on Thursday.

Vice-Minister of Transportation Hu Xijie said transportation administrations should not charge fees or collect penalties without justification. Ticket prices should not be increased unless approved by price supervising departments.

Li Jun, vice-director of the General Administration of Civil Aviation, said civil aviation departments should take all measures to prevent illegal sales and discounts of flight tickets.

Chou Baoxing, vice-minister of construction, called for special checks on the qualifications of enterprises and individuals involved in transportation.

The Spring Festival transportation peak extends from January 17to February 25. It is expected that 1.82 billion journeys will be made during the period, up 3.7 percent on year-on-year basis.

(People's Daily January 10, 2003)