Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km) in China
China: Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km) was 946,499 million passenger-km in 2021. ▲ Rising
Railways, passengers carried in China, 1995–2021
Source: Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC). Measured in million passenger-km.
Analysis
In 2021, railways, passengers carried in China stood at 946,499 million passenger-km.
The figure is up 188.3% on the previous year and up 2.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, railways, passengers carried in China peaked at 1.44 million million passenger-km in 2019 and was at its lowest, 328,251 million passenger-km, in 2020.
China ranks 1st of 101 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km) in China, year by year
| Year | million passenger-km | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 354,261 million passenger-km | — |
| 1996 | 332,202 million passenger-km | -6.2% |
| 1997 | 354,353 million passenger-km | +6.7% |
| 1998 | 369,097 million passenger-km | +4.2% |
| 1999 | 404,627 million passenger-km | +9.6% |
| 2000 | 441,468 million passenger-km | +9.1% |
| 2001 | 463,655 million passenger-km | +5.0% |
| 2002 | 480,305 million passenger-km | +3.6% |
| 2003 | 462,279 million passenger-km | -3.8% |
| 2004 | 551,196 million passenger-km | +19.2% |
| 2005 | 583,320 million passenger-km | +5.8% |
| 2006 | 635,327 million passenger-km | +8.9% |
| 2007 | 689,618 million passenger-km | +8.5% |
| 2008 | 777,860 million passenger-km | +12.8% |
| 2009 | 787,890 million passenger-km | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 791,158 million passenger-km | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 921,541 million passenger-km | +16.5% |
| 2012 | 940,249 million passenger-km | +2.0% |
| 2013 | 1.01 million million passenger-km | +7.2% |
| 2014 | 1.09 million million passenger-km | +8.1% |
| 2015 | 1.11 million million passenger-km | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 1.16 million million passenger-km | +4.6% |
| 2017 | 1.27 million million passenger-km | +9.2% |
| 2018 | 1.36 million million passenger-km | +7.5% |
| 2019 | 1.44 million million passenger-km | +5.6% |
| 2020 | 328,251 million passenger-km | -77.2% |
| 2021 | 946,499 million passenger-km | +188.3% |
China compared with similar countries
- China's 946,499 million passenger-km is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 503.54 million passenger-km, 1879.7× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- China's 946,499 million passenger-km is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 4,163 million passenger-km, 227.4× the median. (13 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km) in China changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | +188.3% | 328,251 million passenger-km | 946,499 million passenger-km |
| 2020 | -77.2% | 1.44 million million passenger-km | 328,251 million passenger-km |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 362,908 million passenger-km | 332,202 million passenger-km | 404,627 million passenger-km | 5 |
| 2000s | 587,292 million passenger-km | 441,468 million passenger-km | 787,890 million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.11 million million passenger-km | 791,158 million passenger-km | 1.44 million million passenger-km | 10 |
| 2020s | 637,375 million passenger-km | 328,251 million passenger-km | 946,499 million passenger-km | 2 |
Countries ranked near China
More infrastructure data for China
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 1.87 billion (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions 131.75 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 166.51 million (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions 11.73 per 100 people (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per capita 0.1182 units per person (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, annual growth rate -7.19 % change on previous year (2024)
- Fixed telephone subscriptions, gaps filled 166.51 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per capita 1.33 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is railways, passengers carried in China?
- Railways, passengers carried in China was 946,499 million passenger-km in 2021, according to Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC).
- What is the highest railways, passengers carried recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 1.44 million million passenger-km in 2019.
- What is the lowest railways, passengers carried recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 328,251 million passenger-km in 2020.
- How does China rank for railways, passengers carried?
- China ranks 1st out of 101 countries with data for 2021.
- Is railways, passengers carried rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Railisa Database (UIC), International Union of Railways (UIC), published as part of Railways, passengers carried (million passenger-km). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Passengers carried by railway are the number of passengers transported by rail multiplied by kilometers traveled.