Rebound in passenger trips, cargo transport seen during Spring Festival

More passengers traveled by train and more cross-border cargo was transported via the railway network during this year's Spring Festival travel rush, evidence of the recovery of the flow of travelers and goods in China.

Some 348 million trips were made via China's railway network during the 40-day travel rush — which began on Jan 7 and ended on Wednesday — a year-on-year increase of 37.4 percent, national railway operator China State Railway Group said on Thursday.

About 8.7 million trips were made daily on average during the rush, 85.5 percent of the volume seen during the same period in 2019, and roughly 415 million metric tons of cargo was transported via the railway system.

A total of 1,802 freight trains between China and Europe were operated during the travel rush, a year-on-year increase of 14 percent. Those trains carried 190,000 containers, 23 percent more than during last year's rush.

In addition, 325,000 tons of cross-border cargo was transported via the China-Laos Railway, nearly three times as much as the amount transported during the travel rush last year, ensuring the stable international supply chain.

This year's Spring Festival travel rush was the first since China optimized its COVID-19 management last month. The country also relaxed its travel restrictions in December.