BEIJING — China's road passenger volume fell 26.2 percent year-on-year in 2021 partly because sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks hit transport activities, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Transport.

Road passenger trips amounted to 5.09 billion last year. In December alone, road passenger trips reached 375.87 million.

Northwest China's Shaanxi province saw the sharpest decline in road passenger volume in 2021, down by 56.8 percent year-on-year, followed by Qinghai and Gansu provinces.

Beijing, however, reported a 14.3-percent increase in road passenger trips last year, while Tianjin saw a 12.5-percent rise, the data showed.