BEIJING — China's mainland recorded an increase in passenger trips in its urban transit networks in December 2021, official data showed.

The urban transit lines in 51 cities handled a total of 2.08 billion passenger trips in December, up 2.5 percent from a year earlier, according to the Ministry of Transport.

The December amount also grew 5.6 percent on a monthly basis.

By the end of December, China has put 269 urban rail transit lines into operation, with the total length reaching 8,708 km, the ministry said.