Passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain

Spain: Passenger-kilometers by rail was 17.00 billion million passenger-km in 2021. ▲ Rising

Latest (2021)
17.00 billion million passenger-km
Change on year
up 41.7%
World rank
13th
of 101 countries
All-time high
28.84 billion million passenger-km
in 2019
All-time low
12.00 billion million passenger-km
in 2020
Years of data
27
1995–2021

Passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain, 1995–2021

010.0B20.0B30.0B1995200820211995: 16.6B million passenger-km1996: 16.8B million passenger-km1997: 17.9B million passenger-km1998: 18.9B million passenger-km1999: 19.7B million passenger-km2000: 20.1B million passenger-km2001: 20.8B million passenger-km2002: 21.2B million passenger-km2003: 21.1B million passenger-km2004: 20.4B million passenger-km2005: 21.6B million passenger-km2006: 22.1B million passenger-km2007: 21.9B million passenger-km2008: 24.0B million passenger-km2009: 23.1B million passenger-km2010: 22.5B million passenger-km2011: 22.8B million passenger-km2012: 22.5B million passenger-km2013: 23.8B million passenger-km2014: 25.1B million passenger-km2015: 26.1B million passenger-km2016: 26.7B million passenger-km2017: 27.5B million passenger-km2018: 28.4B million passenger-km2019: 28.8B million passenger-km2020: 12.0B million passenger-km2021: 17.0B million passenger-km

Source: International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in million passenger-km.

Analysis

In 2021, passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain stood at 17.00 billion million passenger-km.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 41.7% on the previous year and down 25.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain peaked at 28.84 billion million passenger-km in 2019 and was at its lowest, 12.00 billion million passenger-km, in 2020.

That places Spain 13th out of 101 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 17.96 billion million passenger-km 16.59 billion million passenger-km 19.66 billion million passenger-km 5
2000s 21.64 billion million passenger-km 20.14 billion million passenger-km 23.97 billion million passenger-km 10
2010s 25.42 billion million passenger-km 22.46 billion million passenger-km 28.84 billion million passenger-km 10
2020s 14.50 billion million passenger-km 12.00 billion million passenger-km 17.00 billion million passenger-km 2

Countries ranked near Spain

  1. 10 Italy 27.69 billion million passenger-km compare
  2. 11 Pakistan 24.90 billion million passenger-km compare
  3. 12 United Kingdom 24.19 billion million passenger-km compare
  4. 14 Brazil 16.49 billion million passenger-km compare
  5. 15 Poland 15.84 billion million passenger-km compare
  6. 16 Switzerland 14.31 billion million passenger-km compare

See the full ranking of 101 places →

More reference data data for Spain

All data for Spain →

Frequently asked questions

What is passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain?
Passenger-kilometers by rail in Spain was 17.00 billion million passenger-km in 2021, according to International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in Spain?
The highest recorded value was 28.84 billion million passenger-km in 2019.
What is the lowest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in Spain?
The lowest recorded value was 12.00 billion million passenger-km in 2020.
How does Spain rank for passenger-kilometers by rail?
Spain ranks 13th out of 101 countries with data for 2021.
Is passenger-kilometers by rail rising or falling in Spain?
Over the last ten years it is down 25.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Spain data come from?
The figures come from International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Passenger-kilometers by rail. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Passenger-kilometers by rail
Unit
million passenger-km
Source
International Union of Railways (UIC) and OECD, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
101 places, 2,125 data points, 1995–2021
Last refreshed

The number of passengers transported by rail, multiplied by the kilometers traveled. This is measured in passenger-kilometers.