BEIJING — Railway passenger numbers are expected to grow on Feb 21, the last day of weeklong Chinese Lunar New Year holiday.

Some 11.8 million passenger trips will be made on China’s railway network on Feb 21, up 7.6 percent year-on-year, as people return from their hometowns.

The railway system will add 1,091 trains to meet the travel demand, according to the corporation.

The seven-day Lunar New Year holiday began on Feb 15. A 40-day period of heavy passenger traffic, known as chunyun, spans from Feb 1 to March 12.

During the 40 days, about 390 million passenger trips are expected to be made via railways, up 8.8 percent from the previous year, according to the company.