Transport passengers and freight
Rail, bus and airline passenger volumes, plus rail and air freight.
- Records
- 32
- Vintage
- 2026 edition; observation years vary by table
- Last checked
- 16 October 2026
- Published by
- GovernmentDepartment of Census and Statistics, Sri Lanka
What this dataset contains
National annual figures for 2022–2025 compiled by DCS from the Sri Lanka Transport Board, National Transport Commission, Department of Railways and Civil Aviation Authority. Passenger series cover railways, omnibus services, SLTB, the national airline and foreign airlines. Freight series cover railways and the two airline categories. Passenger figures are in thousands of persons; freight is in thousands of metric tonnes. The 2024 SLTB passenger figure is revised.
How it is used here
Track railway passenger volume and railway freight separately. Airline and bus series can be selected with their original units and category definitions.
What it cannot tell you
Volumes do not identify routes, passenger origins, travel distances, service frequency or unique travellers. The source labels a bus category “Ominibus Services” without defining its overlap with SLTB; the two bus series must not be added as if they were a verified total. Passenger counts and freight tonnage have different units, and air traffic should not be interpreted as resident mobility.