Workers from China Railway Nanning Group Co Ltd inspect overhead electric cables in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, on Jan 9, 2023. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING - The number of passenger trips handled by China's urban rail transit networks soared 87 percent year-on-year in May, official data showed.

A total of 2.49 billion passenger trips were made via China's urban transit networks in 54 cities last month, according to the Ministry of Transport.

The figure was 25.3 percent higher than the average monthly level in 2019, the data revealed.

ALSO READ: Chongqing builds globe's largest rail transit network in a mountainous area

At the end of May, China had 292 urban rail transit lines in operation, with a total length of 9,652.6 kilometers, according to the ministry.