BEIJING — A total of 260 million passenger trips were made during the first 10 days of China's Spring Festival travel rush in 2022, a transport official said on Jan 27.

The figure was 46 percent higher than the same period of 2021, Liu Pengfei, spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport, told a press conference.

As of Jan 26, the number of railway and road trips reached 54.12 million and 196 million, respectively, while waterway and air passenger trips hit 3.88 million and 8.72 million, Liu said.

The pre-holiday passenger flow is expected to peak around Jan 30, while return trips are likely to peak during Feb 5 to 8 and Feb 16 to 17, he added.

During the 40-day travel season, also known as chunyun, many Chinese people will travel to reunite with their families for the Chinese Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, which falls on Feb 1 this year.