China has registered more than 3.5 billion passenger trips during the first 15 days of this year's Spring Festival travel rush, which began on February 2, according to data released by the Ministry of Transport.
The country is set to handle more than 220 million inter-regional passenger trips nationwide on Monday, the 15th day of this year's 40-day Spring Festival travel rush period and the Chinese New Year's Eve.
The number marked an 8.9 percent increase compared with the same period in 2025. Railways expect to carry 7.1 million passengers on Thursday, with 301 extra trains added. As of 08:00 Monday, more than 257 million tickets had already been sold via 12306, the nation's official train ticket booking platform.
Many train stations have coordinated in advance with local government departments to extend the service hours of other transit options, collectively enhancing the "last mile" experience for travelers.
On highways across the country, the total traffic volume is expected to exceed 33 million vehicle trips on Monday, relatively lower than that in previous days. Weather conditions across various regions are generally favorable for travel.
In civil aviation, China's airlines are expected to transport 1.93 million passengers on Monday, a 4.5 percent increase compared to the same period of the last year.
Since the start of the Spring Festival travel rush, the country's civil aviation sector handled an average of 2.339 million passenger trips daily, reflecting a 5.1 percent increase compared to the same period in 2025.
The Spring Festival, also known as the Chinese New Year, falls on Tuesday this year, and the official holiday period lasts nine days.
The annual travel surge, known as chunyun and often described as the world's largest human migration, is expected to generate a record 9.5 billion inter-regional passenger trips during the 40-day period running from February 2 to March 13 this year.
China sees 3.5 bln inter-regional passenger trips during first 15 days of Spring Festival travel rush
