National Railway Administration: National railway freight volume exceeded 1.2 billion tonnes in the first quarter.

　　According to the official WeChat account of the National Railway Administration, in the first quarter of 2026, passenger transportation on the national railways remained at a high level, and freight transportation showed good growth momentum. This effectively supported the safe, orderly, and pleasant travel of the people and met the demand for freight transportation, providing strong support for high-quality economic and social development.

　　In terms of passenger transportation, the railway departments continued to optimize the supply of passenger transport products, strengthened transportation organization and supervision during peak periods such as New Year's Day and Spring Festival travel rush. In the first quarter, the national railways completed a total passenger volume of 1.133 billion people, an increase of 5.5% year-on-year; passenger turnover reached 414.683 billion passenger-kilometers, an increase of 3.2% year-on-year. In March, passenger volume reached 376 million people, an increase of 11.7% year-on-year; passenger turnover reached 130.582 billion passenger-kilometers, an increase of 16.5% year-on-year.

Passenger volume of national railways in the first quarter of 2023-2026

Passenger turnover of national railways in the first quarter of 2023-2026. All images are sourced from the official WeChat account of the National Railway Administration.

　　In terms of freight transportation, in the first quarter, the national railways completed a total freight volume of 1.281 billion tons, an increase of 2.2% year-on-year; freight turnover reached 907.198 billion ton-kilometers, an increase of 5.1% year-on-year. In March, freight volume reached 460 million tons, an increase of 3.4% year-on-year; freight turnover reached 334.267 billion ton-kilometers, an increase of 6.9% year-on-year. Looking at the breakdown of transportation categories, in the first quarter, the national railways transported a total of 681 million tons of coal, 256 million tons of containers, and 15.28 million tons of grain, with year-on-year increases of 1.7%, 10.7%, and 11.3%, respectively.

　　In terms of fixed asset investment, in the first quarter, the national railways completed fixed asset investment of 137.9 billion yuan, an increase of 5.1% year-on-year. Railway construction investment grew steadily, achieving a good start for the year.