Tollways made free for Spring Festival

Several large obstacles have been cleared away to allow travelers to use tollways free of charge during important holidays and festivals, a Ministry of Transport spokesman said on Thursday morning.

"The concerned government departments have reached a consensus on this issue and we are waiting for a final approval from the authorities," He Jianzhong, ministry spokesman, said at a news conference.

In an attempt at easing the traffic congestion seen at some tollbooths in some provinces in recent years, drivers will now not have to pay to use tollways during Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year.

The public has asked authorities to make tollways free to use on more public holidays.

Meanwhile, China started a national campaign in June 2011 to regulate the collection of fees at tollways. It has led to the taking down of unauthorized tollbooths and the lowering unreasonably high tolls in some places.

By the end of May, tolls ceased to be collected on 3,706 kilometers of road, and 328 tollbooths were removed after being deemed to be too close to other booths, according to statistics provided by the ministry.