BEIJING - Some 87,000 kilometers of new highways opened in China in 2012, marking a record-high year-on-year growth rate, a senior transport official said Saturday.

Minister of Transport Yang Chuantang said 11,000 km of the new highways are expressways. In addition to building new highways, China has also improved 194,000 km of rural roads this year, according to Yang.

"China's transport sector has seen historic changes during the past decade," said Yang, adding that the total length of highways in operation is expected to reach 4.1 million km by the end of this year.

However, Yang also said China's transport capacity remains insufficient, considering the booming demand created by the country's industrialization and urbanization.

To meet mounting demand, Yang said China will continue to intensify transport facility construction and try to make these facilities more durable and reliable.

China will also make efforts to improve transport facilities in rural areas as well as those in the country's central and western regions, he said.

At the same time, China will improve road safety by taking measures to prevent serious transport accidents, Yang said.