Thousands of people gathered at the main bus and train stations in Urumqi to flee the recent ethnic violence that has rocked the Chinese city.
Around 10,000 people have been leaving the city's main Bayi bus station every day since the weekend violence, which is about double the normal traffic.
The official said this period was often busy as students in the capital of northwestern Xinjiang region headed home for the summer holidays, but that many others were also leaving due to the unrest.
One concerned woman had bought a ticket back to her home town of Lanzhou, in Gansu province 1,900km away.
'I am just going home for a while to let things calm down,' said the woman.
The Chinese government said 156 people were killed and more than 1,000 others were injured in violence that erupted after a Uighur protest in Urumqi on Sunday.
Sporadic violence has continued through the week.
In an attempt to quell the unrest, the authorities decided to close a number of mosques for Friday prayers in Kashgar and Urumqi.
