# China's Railway Carries 2.8 Billion Passenger Trips in Seven Months, a New Record

> China State Railway Group data show the national railway handled 2.8 billion passenger trips in the first seven months of 2026, up 4.1 percent and a record for the period, with 11,462 daily trains on average as cross-border and tourist services grew.

- Source: Times of China (Times of China)
- Canonical URL: https://timesofchina.cn.com/en/article/china-railway-2-8-billion-passenger-trips-record
- Chinese edition: https://timesofchina.cn.com/article/china-railway-2-8-billion-passenger-trips-record
- Author: 中国时报编辑部
- Section: Business
- Published: 2026-08-15T11:00:00+08:00
- Updated: 2026-08-15T11:00:00+08:00
- Tags: 铁路, 客运, 高铁, 跨境旅游, 国铁集团

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China's railway passenger traffic has set a new record. According to China State Railway Group, in the first seven months of 2026 the national railway handled 2.8 billion passenger trips, up 4.1 percent year on year and a record for the period. Behind the huge flow of travelers are steadily optimized capacity and increasingly varied travel demand.

## Denser services

To handle the strong demand, from January to July the national railway ran an average of 11,462 passenger trains a day, 571 more than a year earlier, an increase of 5.2 percent. Drawing on big data from its 12306 ticketing platform, the railway adjusted capacity dynamically and added temporary trains during peak periods to help more travelers get where they are going.

## Cross-border travel heats up

Growth in international and cross-border traffic was especially striking. In the first seven months, the railway carried 14.85 million foreign passenger trips, up 32.5 percent. Cross-border traffic on the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link reached 20.05 million trips, up 11.5 percent, and the China-Laos Railway carried 214,000 trips, up 38.2 percent. Visa-free and other facilitation policies further boosted cross-border tourism. China's international trains now reach destinations including Mongolia, Russia, Vietnam and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

## Turning the journey into an experience

The railway is also turning travel itself into an experience. By the end of July, 2,159 tourist trains had been operated nationwide, and around concerts and sports events the railway ran 79 customized trains, linking attendance with travel. As trains become more than a means of transport, the meaning of a journey is quietly changing.

The figure of 2.8 billion trips reflects both a rebound in people's desire to travel and a test of the railway system's organization and service in peak season. How to keep safety and experience intact while traffic runs high remains a long-term task.

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Originally published by Times of China. Free to cite with attribution and a link to https://timesofchina.cn.com/en/article/china-railway-2-8-billion-passenger-trips-record.