The journey back to work after the Lunar New Year holiday is arduous for many Chinese as rain and snow brought about by a cold front disturb travel.
Northeast China's Liaoning Province experienced the first snow in the Year of the Monkey on Saturday -- the last day of the week-long Spring Festival holiday.
Local transportation departments said most of the expressways in the province became icy and were forced to close as of 9 a.m.. The few unclosed roads witnessed slow-moving traffic. Shipping services at the ports of the coastal city of Dalian have all been suspended due to strong winds.
The provincial meteorological department forecast snow from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and a drop in temperature of up to ten degrees Celsius, with the lowest temperature reaching minus 18 degrees Celsius.
The post-holiday travel rush started on Friday. The expectation of rain and snow have forced many travelers turn to railways in Liaoning. Railway authorities of Shenyang City added 12 pairs of passenger trains linking Shenyang and Changchun cities to Beijing on Friday.
The extreme weather will continue affecting traffic until Sunday, the Liaoning meteorological department said.
East China's Shandong Province also witnessed heavy rain and snow on Saturday. As of 7 a.m., entrances to around 40 expressways closed down, transportation department of Shandong said.
Local meteorological authorities forecast a cold front with rain and snow on Saturday.
According to the National Meteorological Center (NMC) on Friday, a cold air would sweep southeastward across China, bringing strong winds, rain or snow to northern, central and eastern regions, from Friday to Sunday.
