The average time to transport donated organs in China has been shortened by up to one and a half hours since the country established green channels for this purpose three years ago, a national health official said.

The improved transportation efficiency has contributed to an increase in organ sharing by 8 percent and in the utilization rate by 6.7 percent, Guo Yanhong, an official with the Medical Administration Bureau of the National Health Commission, said at a news conference on Tuesday.

In the first half of this year, 7,186 organs were donated, up 3.5 percent compared with the same period last year, Guo said.

One major challenge in organ transplants is the time required for transportation, since donated organs need to be transplanted as quickly as possible to optimize functionality. For example, a liver must be transplanted within 12 hours, while a heart must be done so within eight hours.

To shorten transport time and reduce the impact that transportation has on the quality of the organ, China announced in 2016 that it would establish green channels for the transportation of human donor organs.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China has since opened 1,932 green channels for the transportation of human donor organs. According to the commission, 1,984 donated organs were transported last year, and 16 airlines have joined the initiative.

China Eastern Airlines was ranked first in this aspect.

"Since 2016, China Eastern Airlines has witnessed a dramatic increase in requests for the transport of declared human donor organs," said Chen Gang, deputy general manager of the airline's customer committee.

The airline transported 891 organs last year, Chen said.

Together with China Southern Airlines, Air China and Shanghai Airlines, the four carriers completed 87 percent of air transportation for donated organs. The top three transported organs are liver, kidney and heart. Other frequently transported organs include lungs and corneas.

China has been ranked first in Asia and second worldwide for the number of organ donations and transplants every year. While the country has about 1.5 million patients who suffer from organ failures every year, with 300,000 of them being suitable for transplants, only over 10,000 people can receive transplants, according to the National Health Commission.