BEIJING -- China's railway sector is expected to handle 21 million passenger trips on Tuesday, the first day of the weeklong National Day holiday, data from the national railway operator has shown.

China also plans to schedule an additional 1,476 passenger trains on Tuesday to meet rising travel demand, according to China State Railway Group Co, Ltd.

During the holiday period, an average of more than 12,000 passenger trains are scheduled to be operated daily.

Over 17.28 million passenger trips were made by rail on Monday.

The weeklong National Day holiday runs from Tuesday through Oct 7.