SHANGHAI: Mayor Han Zheng yesterday called on the city's residents to wait and visit the exhibition pavilions at the Expo site after the event ends, so as to make room for more visitors from outside the city.

"Some sought-after pavilions, including the China Pavilion, will be kept open after the Expo ends on Oct 31, so our residents will be able to visit them after the Expo's official closing. We encourage Shanghai residents to go there after it finishes or during our trial operation in April," said Han in his supplementary report to the annual municipal people's congress.

Approximately 70 million visitors are expected to flock to the event, which opens its doors on May 1, for a chance to experience the latest advances in architecture and engineering worldwide.