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Rail freight traffic

Rail freight traffic in millions of tonne-kilometers.

Unit: million tonne-kilometers Period: 1995–2021 Source: World Development Indicators (World Bank)
Source: World Bank · About the indicator
Average: 96,539 M t-km Countries: 113

The ranking uses the latest available value for each country — the year is shown in the row. The table spans 1995 to 2021.

Rail freight traffic, 1995–2021

Top-20 · million tonne-kilometers

Rail freight traffic, 1995–202101M2M3M4MChinaChina: 3,018,200 M t-km3.02MRussiaRussia: 2,638,562 M t-km2.64MUnited StatesUnited States: 2,239,401 M t-km2.24MIndiaIndia: 719,762 M t-km719,762AustraliaAustralia: 453,091 M t-km453,091CanadaCanada: 430,170 M t-km430,170KazakhstanKazakhstan: 302,156 M t-km302,156UkraineUkraine: 175,587 M t-km175,587GermanyGermany: 123,067 M t-km123,067South AfricaSouth Africa: 113,342 M t-km113,342MexicoMexico: 92,437 M t-km92,437PolandPoland: 54,387 M t-km54,387BelarusBelarus: 44,478 M t-km44,478FranceFrance: 35,751 M t-km35,751IranIran: 32,920 M t-km32,920UzbekistanUzbekistan: 24,619 M t-km24,619ItalyItaly: 24,262 M t-km24,262SwedenSweden: 23,246 M t-km23,246AustriaAustria: 21,781 M t-km21,781MongoliaMongolia: 18,345 M t-km18,345
Rail freight traffic — 1995–2021 Current breakdown Full series CSV XLSX JSON
# Year Subregion World rank
1 CN China 3.02M 2019 1
2 RU Russia 2.64M 2021 2
3 US United States 2.24M 2021 3
4 IN India 719,762 2021 4
5 AU Australia 453,091 2021 5
6 CA Canada 430,170 2021 6
7 KZ Kazakhstan 302,156 2020 7
8 UA Ukraine 175,587 2020 8
9 DE Germany 123,067 2021 9
10 ZA South Africa 113,342 2008 10
11 MX Mexico 92,437 2021 11
12 PL Poland 54,387 2021 12
13 BY Belarus 44,478 2021 13
14 FR France 35,751 2021 14
15 IR Iran 32,920 2021 15
16 UZ Uzbekistan 24,619 2021 16
17 IT Italy 24,262 2021 17
18 SE Sweden 23,246 2021 18
19 AT Austria 21,781 2021 19
20 MN Mongolia 18,345 2021 20
21 JP Japan 18,340 2020 21
22 CZ Czechia 16,326 2021 22
23 TR Türkiye 15,900 2021 23
24 ID Indonesia 15,573 2019 24
25 GB United Kingdom 15,212 2020 25
26 LT Lithuania 14,566 2021 26
27 TM Turkmenistan 13,327 2017 27
28 RO Romania 13,312 2019 28
29 CH Switzerland 12,024 2021 29
30 HU Hungary 11,346 2021 30
31 FI Finland 10,749 2021 31
32 ES Spain 10,299 2021 32
33 BR Brazil 9,394 2007 33
34 SK Slovakia 8,580 2021 34
35 AR Argentina 8,377 2017 35
36 PK Pakistan 8,080 2018 36
37 MR Mauritania 7,536 2010 37
38 LV Latvia 7,367 2021 38
39 NL Netherlands 7,188 2021 39
40 KR South Korea 6,757 2021 40
41 BE Belgium 6,698 2011 41
42 AZ Azerbaijan 5,316 2021 42
43 SI Slovenia 4,937 2021 43
44 BG Bulgaria 4,658 2021 44
45 NZ New Zealand 4,444 2021 45
46 NO Norway 4,305 2021 46
47 VN Vietnam 3,759 2020 47
48 CL Chile 3,585 2020 48
49 GE Georgia 3,322 2021 49
50 HR Croatia 3,172 2021 50
51 MA Morocco 3,148 2021 51
52 RS Serbia 2,925 2021 52
53 PT Portugal 2,699 2021 53
54 DK Denmark 2,592 2018 54
55 TH Thailand 2,562 2011 55
56 GT Guatemala 2,207 2000 56
57 SY Syria 2,206 2010 57
58 EE Estonia 2,128 2021 58
59 SA Saudi Arabia 1,852 2010 59
60 EG Egypt 1,592 2010 60
61 KE Kenya 1,399 2004 61
62 AE United Arab Emirates 1,380 2021 62
63 CU Cuba 1,351 2007 63
64 TZ Tanzania 1,196 2004 64
65 MZ Mozambique 1,193 2011 65
66 IL Israel 1,085 2021 66
67 BD Bangladesh 1,053 2016 67
68 BA Bosnia and Herzegovina 1,040 2020 68
69 KG Kyrgyzstan 1,003 2021 69
70 DZ Algeria 908 2019 70
71 MM Myanmar 885 2004 71
72 CM Cameroon 874 2021 72
73 SZ Eswatini 862 2011 73
74 AM Armenia 840 2020 74
75 MY Malaysia 818 2020 75
76 ZW Zimbabwe 703 2020 76
77 CI Côte d'Ivoire 675 2005 77
78 BW Botswana 674 2007 78
79 MD Moldova 665 2021 79
80 PE Peru 599 1998 80
81 GR Greece 579 2021 81
82 TN Tunisia 413 2021 82
83 GA Gabon 409 2020 83
84 SN Senegal 384 2006 84
85 MK North Macedonia 375 2021 85
86 JO Jordan 344 2010 86
87 ZM Zambia 297 2017 87
88 UY Uruguay 284 2007 88
89 TJ Tajikistan 274 2020 89
90 CG Republic of the Congo 257 2009 90
91 IQ Iraq 249 2010 91
92 UG Uganda 218 2002 92
93 CD Democratic Republic of the Congo 192 2021 93
94 ML Mali 189 2002 94
95 GH Ghana 181 2006 95
96 LU Luxembourg 176 2021 96
97 ME Montenegro 130 2019 97
98 LK Sri Lanka 127 2015 98
99 MG Madagascar 122 2014 99
100 DJ Djibouti 118 2005 100
101 KH Cambodia 92 2003 101
102 VE Venezuela 81 2006 102
103 NG Nigeria 77 2005 103
104 IE Ireland 70 2021 104
105 HK Hong Kong 41 1995 105
106 BJ Benin 36 2006 106
107 SD Sudan 34 2013 107
108 MW Malawi 33 2007 108
109 AL Albania 25 2021 109
110 SV El Salvador 13 1996 110
111 LI Liechtenstein 9 2013 111
112 BF Burkina Faso 1 2007 112
113 PH Philippines 1 2004 113
Nothing found. Check the spelling of the name.
Maximum 3.02M M t-km
Median 2,206 M t-km
Minimum 1 M t-km
World 5,646 M t-km

About the indicator

Rail freight traffic in millions of tonne-kilometers: the mass of the freight carried multiplied by the distance of the haul. The highest values belong to countries with a long reach and large-scale extraction of raw materials, where rail remains the cheapest way to move bulk cargo over long distances.

Updates
quarterly
Unit of measurement
million tonne-kilometers
Observation period
1995–2021
License
CC BY 4.0
Dataset
World Development Indicators

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