Favorable policies have been rolled out to encourage employees to stay in the city they work in for the Spring Festival holiday, in a bid to avoid the travel rush and prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Some cities are also encouraging employees to continue working through the holiday from Feb 11 to 17 and avoid traveling to their hometowns to help their enterprises meet production targets.

The incentives include overtime pay and subsidies for the remaining employees who work during the holiday, free food and accommodation, free tickets to local scenic spots and holidays arranged for another time of year.

During the annual Spring Festival travel rush, which begins on Jan 28 and ends on March 8, the country sees the world's largest human migration as people travel to their hometowns for family reunions.

China's railways are expected to transport 407 million passengers during the period this year. However, people are starting to reconsider their travel plans because of recent coronavirus cases.

Hebei province said on Sunday it has nearly 400 COVID-19 patients and asymptomatic carriers. Many local governments issued notices in the past week, calling on people not to make "unnecessary" trips to their hometowns to prevent the spread of the virus.

Some cities have advocated family reunion dinners of less than 10 people and urged greetings to be sent online or via telephone calls. Workers in the cold-chain imported food industry, where there have been a number of infections, have been encouraged to report their plans in advance.

Zeng Yixin, deputy head of the National Health Commission, said at a news conference on Saturday that people are advised to stay in their city of work and reduce travel for the holiday as precautionary measures against spreading the virus.

He also encouraged staggered travel periods and said people should shop online if possible.

Public events such as conferences should limit the number of participants, while large holiday gatherings such as scenic tours should limit and control the flow of people, he added.