Advance booking for railway tickets has been extended from five days to 11 days, the railway authority said. (Useful tip:Train Timetable Search) 

The new policy means that travelers would buy tickets for trains leaving local stations 11 days before the departure date.

Shanghai Daily advises travelers to go buy the railway tickets as early as possible ahead of the planned departures especially around the approaching Spring Festival transport peak, when rail tickets would be more difficult to get than usual.

The tickets are available at the city's two railway stations as well as agent offices across town.

The three-day New Year holiday saw a daily average of 137,000 travelers leaving from the city's two railway stations.

Four extra train shuttles between Shanghai and nearby Hangzhou, Suzhou and Wuxi cities, were added during the holiday to cope with demand.

The three direct ticketing offices of local railway stations are located on:

230 Beijing Road E; 

22 Taopu Road;  

77 Wanhangdu Road.

Bullet or speed train tickets could be purchased at booths located.

The railway authority's official information Website, www.shz-shrail.com, also offers online ticketing and train schedule information.

(Shanghai Daily by Dong Zhen January 3, 2008)