China’s national railway system demonstrated remarkable operational capacity during the recent Spring Festival holiday, transporting approximately 121 million passenger trips across the nine-day festive period. According to official data released by China State Railway Group, this year’s travel volume represents an impressive 11.5% increase compared to the same period last year, underscoring both robust travel demand and sustained economic vitality.
The holiday period, which concluded on Monday, witnessed unprecedented passenger flows as family reunions, tourism activities, and return journeys created overlapping travel peaks. Railway operations maintained an average daily passenger volume of 13.41 million trips throughout the celebration period. The transportation system achieved a particularly significant milestone on the final day of the holiday, handling 18.73 million passenger journeys—setting a new historical record for single-day travel volume during China’s Spring Festival travel season.
Concurrently, railway freight services maintained steady operations with 85.38 million metric tons of cargo transported during the same period, reflecting a 0.5% year-on-year increase. Railway authorities implemented enhanced transportation organization and passenger service measures to ensure safe, orderly, and efficient travel while supporting uninterrupted logistics operations throughout the holiday period.
The annual Spring Festival travel rush, widely recognized as the world’s largest periodic human migration, continues to serve as a critical indicator of China’s transportation infrastructure capabilities and operational management efficiency. This year’s performance demonstrates the system’s capacity to manage extreme passenger volumes while maintaining service quality and safety standards.