China News Service, Guangzhou, October 2 (Reporter Cai Minjie) On October 1, the 2026 National Day Golden Week kicked off, and Guangdong ushered in a double peak of travel and tourism.
The 2026 Guangzhou Lianhua Mountain Lotus Peak Climb will kick off the National Day Golden Week. Photo courtesy of Guangzhou Lianhua Mountain Scenic Area
Amid the surge in traffic flow, Guangdong's expressway operations have been multi-pronged to ensure smooth operation. On October 1, reporters saw an endless stream of vehicles in the Xincheng service area, and the parking, charging, and refueling areas were in good order. Yunfu traffic control, road administration, expressway operations and other departments collaborated to upgrade and launch the "three tides and one control" full-chain congestion control model for tidal lanes, tidal tunnels and tidal service areas.
Monitoring data shows that after tidal measures are activated, the traffic efficiency of relevant road sections increases by 40%, effectively alleviating traffic pressure during the long holiday peak. Among them, the Kwai Tong and Xincheng service areas have enabled tidal interchange, and the east and west districts share parking and charging resources. The traffic efficiency of the Xincheng service area has increased by 125%. The Kwai Tong service area can flexibly allocate 170 tidal parking spaces, effectively avoiding the backflow of traffic on the main line.
In response to the congestion pain point of the tunnel group, the tidal tunnel control allows cars to pass through the opposite tunnel during the return peak period. The traffic volume per minute on the road section has increased from 40 to 60. In the past, queuing for more than half an hour can now pass in more than ten minutes. At the same time, the local area relies on smart management and control methods such as drone cruises, information board pre-prompts, navigation linkage push, and pre-positioning of accident quick compensation points to ensure the smooth operation of the highway network. Tide control will dynamically adjust the opening period according to the round-trip traffic flow.
Liang Tianzhu guides the passage of vehicles. Photo courtesy of Guangdong Communications Group
Behind the busy road network is the silent persistence of a group of highway workers. During the National Day holiday, Du Juan, a monitor on the Guangdong-Jiangxi Expressway, started a live broadcast of traffic conditions. She usually talks little and turned into a "living map" of the traffic conditions in the live broadcast room: "Hello fellow drivers and passengers, this is a live broadcast of the traffic conditions of the Guangdong-Jiangxi-Huihe Expressway. There is currently a small section of the hot water interchange, so please drive with caution."
At the peak of traffic flow on September 30, the three-hour live broadcast had nearly 100,000 viewers, responded to over a thousand questions from drivers and passengers, and provided real-time broadcasts of congestion nodes and answers to travel inquiries.
Guangqing Expressway toll collector Zhan Fengbo performed allegro, song and dance performances for passengers on the "Qing" stage in the Henghe service area. The young man used his shift breaks to polish the program repeatedly and bring joy and laughter to tourists from all over the world. After stepping off the stage, he returned to the collection booth to provide window service, performing in front of the stage and performing his duties behind the scenes.
Liang Tianzhu, a road administrator of the Zhanxu Expressway, ran back and forth in the heavy traffic flow. During the late-night work to ensure smooth flow, his WeChat step count exceeded 22,000. He diverted traffic flow, dealt with emergencies such as vehicle battery failure, and used non-stop steps to protect the safety and orderliness of the main road from Guangdong to Hainan. "The more steps I take, it means I have reached all the places I need to run, and the more at ease I feel."
While transportation is smooth, the cultural tourism market in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area has been unleashed. The "Lotus Moving Flower City·Lions Roaring Mountains and Rivers" Lotus Peak Climbing Event in Guangzhou Lianhua Mountain has kicked off, and the event will last until the end of December.
This event brings together the lion kings of the north and south for the first time in the Bay Area. The Southern Lions team, Foshan Nanhai Huang Feihong, Zhonglian Cable Martial Arts Dragon and Lion Association, and the Northern Lions team, Cangxian Shen Yun Dragon and Lion Art Troupe, perform on the same stage. The Southern Lions leap high on high poles with agility and power, and the Northern Lions' "Lion Rolling Hydrangea Ball" is powerful and expressive. Two daily lion art performances provide visitors with an intangible cultural heritage feast.
In the golden autumn of Lotus Mountain, a visual feast is unfolding on the water. This golden autumn water lily exhibition brings together more than 600 rare water lilies, including elegant white, tender pink, bright red, deep purple and blue, etc., lying quietly on the blue waves, dyeing the autumn lotus pond into a flowing oil painting.
Among the special varieties on display in the Lotus Fairyland of the main venue, there are not only the Lianhua Mountain self-bred variety "Lianfeng Zichen", but also Wanweisha, Black Beauty, Pink Dawn, Indian Blue Water Lily and other famous products that are widely loved by florists.
Nearly 1,000 orchids of nearly 1,000 varieties bloomed in the Guangzhou Orchid Garden. More than 10,000 orchids bloomed brilliantly in the whole garden. The scale and layout of the exhibition were the largest in the past, creating an orchid appreciation scene of "orchids everywhere and smelling the fragrance every step of the way". The Orchid Hall is in full bloom, with Comet Orchid, Paphiopedilum, Cattleya, Floating Lip Orchid and Vanda Orchid gathered together, with elegant plant shapes and various flowers; the Orchid and Stone Collection Hall displays new high-quality national orchids, with strange stones and famous orchids in the same frame, one strong and one soft complementing each other. (over)
