Passengers wait to enter Guiyang Railway Station in Guiyang, Southwest China's Guizhou province, Jan 10, 2020, the first day of the Spring Festival travel rush. (PHOTO / XINHUA)

BEIJING – Total 69.61 million passenger trips were made on Friday, the first day of the Spring Festival travel rush, according to China's Ministry of Transport.

The number increased by 3 percent year on year, said the ministry.

Total 11.73 million train trips were made Friday, up 23 percent from last year, while the number of road trips made on the same day declined 0.8 percent to 55.22 million.

READ MORE: 2020 Spring Festival travel rush starts in China

The first day saw a 12-percent increase in air passenger trips and a 9.8-percent hike in waterway trips.

The Spring Festival travel rush, also known as "chunyun," will last for 40 days from Jan 10 to Feb 18, and the total number of trips is likely to hit 3 billion during the period, slightly up from the travel rush last year.