BEIJING -- China's railways have handled six million passengers daily since the start of this month, when the peak summer travel season began, the Ministry of Railways announced Tuesday.

A daily average of 6.04 million passengers traveled by rail during the first 15 days of July, the ministry said in a statement on its website. The largest number traveled on July 7, when 6.5 million passengers took trains, according to the statement.

It said most of the passengers were students heading for their hometowns for summer vacation, as well as people taking breaks from work to visit friends and relatives.

To cope with the travel rush, railway authorities have arranged additional trains and stepped up measures to ensure safe transportation, the statement said.