BEIJING — China's waterway freight and passenger volumes rose year-on-year in 2021, according to the data from the Ministry of Transport.

Freight volume totaled 8.24 billion tons last year, up 8.2 percent from a year ago.

China's southernmost province of Hainan saw the biggest increase in waterway freight volume, up 52 percent year-on-year.

Last year, waterway passenger trips totaled 163.37 million, up 9 percent year-on-year.

Northeast China's Jilin province reported the sharpest rise in waterway passenger trips, surging 160.9 percent from a year earlier, the data showed.