Passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka: Passenger-kilometers by rail was 7.41 billion million passenger-km in 2015. ▲ Rising

Latest (2015)
7.41 billion million passenger-km
Change on year
up 18.4%
World rank
28th
of 101 countries
All-time high
7.41 billion million passenger-km
in 2015
All-time low
3.10 billion million passenger-km
in 1996
Years of data
16
1995–2015

Passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka, 1995–2015

02.0B4.0B6.0B8.0B1995200520151995: 3.3B million passenger-km1996: 3.1B million passenger-km1997: 3.1B million passenger-km1998: 3.2B million passenger-km1999: 3.1B million passenger-km2000: 3.2B million passenger-km2001: 4.0B million passenger-km2002: 4.1B million passenger-km2003: 4.3B million passenger-km2004: 4.7B million passenger-km2005: 4.4B million passenger-km2007: 4.8B million passenger-km2011: 4.6B million passenger-km2012: 5.0B million passenger-km2013: 6.3B million passenger-km2015: 7.4B 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

The most recent figure for passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka is 7.41 billion million passenger-km, measured in 2015. That is the highest value across all 16 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.4% on the previous year and up 70.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka peaked at 7.41 billion million passenger-km in 2015 and was at its lowest, 3.10 billion million passenger-km, in 1996.

Sri Lanka ranks 28th of 101 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 16 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 3.18 billion million passenger-km 3.10 billion million passenger-km 3.32 billion million passenger-km 5
2000s 4.19 billion million passenger-km 3.21 billion million passenger-km 4.77 billion million passenger-km 7
2010s 5.82 billion million passenger-km 4.57 billion million passenger-km 7.41 billion million passenger-km 4

Countries ranked near Sri Lanka

  1. 25 Austria 8.43 billion million passenger-km compare
  2. 26 Argentina 8.36 billion million passenger-km compare
  3. 27 Sweden 8.01 billion million passenger-km compare
  4. 29 Belgium 6.97 billion million passenger-km compare
  5. 30 Czechia 6.82 billion million passenger-km compare
  6. 31 Denmark 6.56 billion million passenger-km compare

See the full ranking of 101 places →

More reference data data for Sri Lanka

All data for Sri Lanka →

Frequently asked questions

What is passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka?
Passenger-kilometers by rail in Sri Lanka was 7.41 billion million passenger-km in 2015, 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 Sri Lanka?
The highest recorded value was 7.41 billion million passenger-km in 2015.
What is the lowest passenger-kilometers by rail recorded in Sri Lanka?
The lowest recorded value was 3.10 billion million passenger-km in 1996.
How does Sri Lanka rank for passenger-kilometers by rail?
Sri Lanka ranks 28th out of 101 countries with data for 2015.
Is passenger-kilometers by rail rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
Over the last ten years it is up 70.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Sri Lanka 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 — 16 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.