(Yicai Global) Jan. 19 -- Orders for ride-hailing cars during the Spring Festival travel rush in China are expected to jump this year after the country’s Covid-19 control measures were relaxed.

Ride-hailing service providers will likely receive 70 percent more orders between Jan. 7 and Feb. 15 than over the 40-day travel rush period last year, according to T3go.Com’s data. Orders will also probably recover to 70 percent of the pre-pandemic level.

The Spring Festival travel rush, known as chunyun in Chinese, is the week-long period during the Chinese New Year holiday when people return to their hometowns to celebrate with their families.

Drivers have seen their income as much as double compared with last month thanks to the travel peak and cold weather, Meituan Dache, the ride-hailing platform of food delivery giant Meituan, told Yicai Global.

Orders come in one after another without breaks, said Hu, a driver in Shanghai, adding that he picks up over 20 rides a day. Many of his passengers are headed to Hongqiao Railway Station and Hongqiao International Airport, he noted.

Hu’s income during the peak season is at least 20 percent higher than during the off-peak season, he pointed out. “My car runs for about 10 hours a day, and I earn about CNY800 (USD120).”

Because of the high demand and as many drivers also have returned to their hometowns for the holidays, people in some areas cannot get rides or need to wait for a long time. Orders are unlikely to fall during the Jan. 21 to 27 holiday, as many people need to visit friends and relatives, according to drivers.

Editors: Shi Yi, Futura Costaglione