Sweet and bitter trips underground

By Nie Ligao (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2009-01-15 11:08

Xu Yang is pretty grateful for the new subway lines in Beijing nowadays, even though she has to get up punctually as early as 6:30 am and endure an 80-minute energy-consuming subway trip like millions of other Beijing commuters every day.

"Luckily I can sleep an extra half an hour without worrying about being late since Line 10 was in operation prior to last summer's Beijing Olympics," explained Xu, an office worker here in Beijing.

The photo shows the typical traffic conditions on subway Line 1 at about 7 p.m of the Dawanglu Station in Beijing's Chaoyang District January 12, 2008. [chinadaily.com.cn/by Nie Ligao]

Millions of commuters like Xu have benefited from fast-paced development of the subway lines. The Beijing network now moves 3.4 million passengers a day, the equivalent of the population in Los Angeles, according to bjsubway.com, the official website of the Beijing Subway Company.

It's a far cry from the situation back in 2001, when there were 1.28 million daily riders on the two subway lines with a total length of 42 kilometers. The metro system has expanded dramatically in the past eight years to 200 kilometers, with eight lines and 123 stations covering most key destinations across the Chinese capital.

"Before 2001, I mainly depended on the ground traffic system because I have no other choice," Yang Wei, a native Beijinger in his thirties now living in Fengtai District recalled. "The subway only covered a small area and there was no station near my home before subway Line 5 started operations in 2007."

Like other booming international cities, Beijing is haunted by traffic problems resulting from the swelling population and the doubling number of vehicles. More than 1,000 Beijingers join the city’s 3.3 million drivers every day in pursuit of higher life quality.

The frequent traffic congestion during rush hour is a nightmare for most office workers who need to get to the office on time. "I used to be late for work because of the traffic jams and so I got many warnings from my company when I had to take buses before the subway Line 10 opened," Xu Yang said.

A logistical solution to deal with the traffic woe was in sight when Beijing won the right to host last summer's Olympics. Since then, the government has been determined to build a cheaper and better public transport system to redress the situation.

It started a massive overhaul of the city's underground transport system, which was first put into use in 1969 and were run by the army before starting commercial operation in 1981.

Billions of yuan has been invested to expand the citywide railway network, modernize equipment and management.

The subway fare was lowered by more than 30% to two yuan per trip in 2007 to encourage people to use public transport. In 2008 alone, the city government allocated one billion yuan to subsidize the subway network to keep the fare low.

However, new troubles emerged, as more people go underground to get around.

The biggest problem is overcrowding. During rush hour, passengers have to literally squeeze themselves into subway carriages where riders are packed like sardines.

"Sometimes you even can't breathe," Yang Wei said.

Apart from battling the masses of commuters, the subway network's service time is also a concern. Currently, the underground system starts at about 5 a.m. and finishes before midnight.

The network should at least extend operating hours until 2 a.m. or 3 a.m. to match the pace of the modern city especially for young people, Yang suggested.

Adding pressure to the public transport system, the city initiated a controversial car restriction rule in October, 2008 in a green drive. The trial scheme bans drivers from driving one day a week, taking about 800,000 cars off the road every weekday. As a result, some motorists were forced to use public transport.

To cope with the challenges, the Beijing government plans to extend its existing subway lines to 300 kilometers with an investment of 90 billion yuan (US$13.2 billion) by 2010. The network will expands further to 400 kilometers by 2012.

The authorities' goal is big: to provide rail service for all residents, all of whom will be within one kilometer from a station on the city's subway network of 19 lines.By 2015, 8.8 million commuters will use the metro.

This year alone, Beijing will open a new subway line in the west part of the city and start constructing four new light rail lines in suburban areas.

"Hopefully the subway system will meet the needs and carry passengers to their destinations not only economically and swiftly but also comfortably in the near future," said Xu Yang.