BEIJING, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- China is expected to see 407 million railway passenger trips during the upcoming 40-day Spring Festival travel rush, according to the national railway operator.

An average of 10.18 million railway trips will be made every day during the travel rush from Jan. 28 to March 8 in 2021, China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. said Tuesday.

The country will increase its railway transport capacity during the period, with about 5,000 pairs of passenger trains to be put into operation on a daily basis, up 4.5 percent from a year ago.

Authorities will take precautions against COVID-19, including measures to prevent train overload and arrange separate seats for passengers with fever symptoms.

China's railway passenger trips declined 48.3 percent year on year to 210 million during the Spring Festival travel rush of 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

People in China usually enjoy a week-long holiday for family gatherings and celebrations of the lunar New Year, which falls on Feb. 12 in 2021.