Average Rate of Goods and Passenger traffic (in Km) Carried by Indian Railways from 2018 to 2025

For goods traffic, the average lead distance has shown notable fluctuations within a relatively stable range. Starting at 603 km in 2018-19, it declined to 584 km in 2019-20 and remained steady through the pandemic year of 2020-21. The post-pandemic period saw an interesting increase to 615 km in 2021-22 and further to 635 km in 2022-23, suggesting greater long-distance freight movement during this recovery period. However, this was followed by a slight decrease to 613 km in 2023-24, and a more pronounced provisional decline to 574 km in the partial year 2024-25, potentially indicating a shift toward more regionalized goods movement.

The passenger traffic data reveals even more dramatic variations, particularly during the pandemic period. The average passenger journey distance increased dramatically from 129.9 km in 2019-20 to 184.8 km in 2020-21—a 42% increase. This significant jump likely reflects the operational changes during COVID-19, when short-distance trains were reduced while long-distance services were maintained for essential travel. The average journey length gradually decreased in subsequent years to 149.9 km by 2022-23, suggesting a return to more normal travel patterns, before slightly increasing to 154.2 km in 2023-24.

The contrast between goods and passenger metrics highlights different operational priorities and responses to external challenges. While goods transportation maintained relatively stable average distances even during disruptions, passenger transportation showed greater sensitivity to external factors, with dramatic adjustments during the pandemic years. This difference reflects the essential nature of freight movement for economic continuity versus the more discretionary nature of passenger travel, especially for shorter distances. The provisional data for 2024-25 shows the lowest figures in both categories over the observed period, with goods traffic at 574 km and passenger traffic at 128.5 km. This parallel decline might indicate broader structural changes in transportation patterns, possibly including increased competition from road transport for shorter distances or changing economic activity patterns.