In order to explore whether time-dependent fare strategy can be introduced into the metro operation of Type I big cities to alleviate the severe passenger flow congestion brought by holidays, the survey data of Nanchang metro respondents is used to analyze the travel time choice behavior of subway passengers in Type I big cities. SP survey method was used to collect data on respondents’ travel time choice preferences under the influence of three scheme variables: travel time change, fare and congestion level. Conditional logit model and mixed logit model were used to estimate the variable coefficients of utility function. The results show that the change length of travel time has a significant and negative effect on travel time choice behavior, and the fare level has a significant and positive effect on travel time choice behavior. The survey sample could not reflect the significant impact of congestion level on travel time choice behavior. Compared with the change length of travel time and the congestion level, the fare has a greater impact on the travel time choice behavior, and the respondents are more willing to choose the pre-peak period. Compared with other age groups, the group <35 years old is more willing to delay departure, the group with a monthly income <5000 yuan is more willing to change the travel time than the group with a higher monthly income, and the respondents with a travel time of 16-30 minutes are more willing to change the travel time than other groups. Therefore, according to the conclusion, it is feasible to design the time fare scientifically and reasonably to alleviate the severe congestion of metro stations on holidays in Type I big cities.