The number of passengers trips carried by China's railway network exceeded 4 billion from January to November, marking the first time the annual passenger volume has surpassed the record-high mark, China State Railway Group Co Ltd announced on Wednesday.

In a news release, the company said that as of this year, the total railway operating mileage nationwide has exceeded 160,000 kilometers, with high-speed railway operating mileage surpassing 46,000 kilometers.

Additionally, more than 3,300 railway passenger stations have been built and put into use nationwide, including over 1,300 high-speed railway stations.

The railway network now covers 99 percent of cities with a population of over 200,000, and the high-speed railway network covers 97 percent of cities with a population of over 500,000, the release said.

It said that the significant expansion and improvement in the scale and quality of the railway network, particularly the high-speed railway network, have enhanced the railway passenger transport capacity, providing strong support for promoting the movement of people, industrial linkage, and economic interaction along the routes.

The company said that in the next phase, it will closely monitor changes in passenger demand and plan to make full use of the new lines, stations, and equipment that will be put into operation by the end of the year, in order to prepare for the upcoming Spring Festival travel rush early next year.