OPINION> Commentary
Safety check in subway
(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-07-02 07:40

It's quite necessary to set up safety check machines at the Beijing subway, but they should not largely affect the daily life and work of commuters, says an article in Beijing News. The following is an excerpt:

The June 29 was the first day for Beijing to carry out the safety check of the passengers' belongings in the subway and this check will last until September 20. Safety check equipment has already been installed at the entrances to the subway and safety check workers will employ varying methods to check whether passengers carry dangerous commodities.

The safety check measures taken by Beijing aim to guarantee safe travel of commuters in the subway and ensure the smooth hosting of the Olympic Games. It's quite necessary for a mega-city like Beijing, which has more than 10 million population.

Subway is a key public transport means in Beijing. We must keep in mind how to avoid affecting the traveling of passengers while trying to protect the safety of the subway and passengers.

Vancouver, Canada, has expanded the subway network for the hosting of 2010 Winter Olympics. Canadians are also preparing to step up the safety check and plans to add extra doors at the entrance to the subway. To avoid the negative impacts of beefing up safety checks on the passengers, the local government has already conducted several rounds of surveys, investigations and hearings.

Beijing has a great number of subway stations and entrances and exits as well as toll gates. The government has poured huge funds to the safety check equipment, which fully shows the detailed work done by the government and its determination to ensure safety during the Olympics .

However, we must realize that evil-doers usually hide in the dark and make long-term preparations for causing troubles. And more importantly, they tend to be quite familiar with the safety check system and may easily evade it. These safety check facilities, of course, can serve as a deterrent to trouble makers, but may be not as effective as those "invisible safety checks"- the spontaneous fight against them by the masses themselves - , for facilities are fixed while the people are flexible. We should depend more on the people than on the machines to ensure the safety and the government should not slacken its vigilance just because it has installed safety check machines.

The Beijing subway has a tremendous traffic volume, especially in the rush hours in the morning and evening. Even after the safety check system was not put into use, it would have been rather hard sometimes for passengers to jam into a train. The launch of the safety check system may add frustrations to commuters.

As we know, the subway is the artery of the urban public transport system. It transports people massively and offers fast, convenient and punctual transport services for the passengers. Its effective operation and smooth traffic not only guarantee the daily life and work of commuters, but also contribute to lessening the road traffic intensity and the alleviation of traffic jams. Meanwhile it can reduce the air pollution caused by the exhaust emission of vehicles. These important functions of the subway should be guaranteed as the government tries to beef up safety.

Thus, we should think hard to find out ways to limit the negative influence of safety check machines on the travels of commuters and try our best to take the needs of commuters into account.

(China Daily 07/02/2008 page8)