Urban transit in China – A few interesting facts.

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Metro or subway stations are often quite dull, soulless places that are just a necessary part of the daily commute for many. Using the metro or subway may represent the cheapest and fastest way to get from A to B, but the stations themselves are not usually attractions in their own right. Little about them can usually excite us.

There are of course exceptions to these rules. Moscow’s metro system is considered to be a thing of beauty and Stockholm’s metro system is described as one of the world’s biggest art galleries. The metro systems of various cities in China tend to be less artistic and more functional, but they bring easy and convenient travel to millions of people spread across large distances, easing traffic congestion in some of the largest cities in the world.

That does not mean that they are not interesting places; far from it in fact. While it would be impossible to discuss every single metro station of interest from across China within one single article, we can mention a few points of interest that may intrigue you about those urban transit networks when you are getting around some of those larger cities.

Beijing:

Image Source: sina.com

The Beijing Subway system is the oldest in the whole of China, established in 1969 and therefore even pre-dating the MTR system of Hong Kong, which was established during British colonial rule in 1979. Like the London Underground, there are ‘ghost stations’ on the lines; stations that were once open to the public but have either fallen out of the use or have restricted access. One of them actually leads to the complex for the Metro Driver’s Vocational School, so unless you are training to become a driver, you’ll probably never get to see that particular station up close; as entry is forbidden to the general public.

Shanghai:

Image Source: megaconstrucciones.net

Shanghai’s metro train network is the largest in the world by route length and second largest in terms of the number of stations. From the airport, users can access the world’s first commercial high-speed Maglev system, which goes from Shanghai Pudong International Airport to Longyang Road station. However, as the terminal station is located on the outskirts of central Pudong; many users do not consider the Maglev to be a practical transportation option but an experience in itself; as it reaches a top speed of 431 km per hour.

It is not however, part of Shanghai’s actual metro network and operates on a different fare system. Line 2’s trains may be slower than the Maglev but can deliver passengers to more convenient central locations; even heading out as far as Shanghai Hongqiao International Airport.

Guangzhou:

Image Source: www.railwaygazette.com

Shanghai may have the largest system in China, but in terms of daily ridership; Guangzhou has the busiest and most congested metro right now.

The GuangFo line was the first subway to directly connect two different cities in China via underground rail transit. It represents a convenient way of getting between Guangzhou and Foshan; allowing some to even commute between the two cities on a daily basis.

Some people would say that the Zhujiang New Town APM is a waste of money. Such an opinion may be subjective, but the fact is that it is the most expensive people mover system in the world in terms of construction costs per kilometre; while also holding the honour of also being the least used line in the whole of Guangzhou’s metro network.

Shenzhen:

Image Source: metro-report.com

Futian station is the largest underground train station in Asia but internationally, only the Grand Central terminal station in New York City can claim to be larger. Qinghu station may currently represent the upper end of Line 4, but one can also access Shenzhen’s lesser known tram network after disembarking from the metro system at that station. The tram system currently serves the Northern side of the city’s Longhua district and offers a slower, but scenic journey through some of Shenzhen’s less frequently visited suburbs.

Chongqing:

Image Source: pond5.com

When it comes to the peculiarities of urban transit systems; Chongqing could be considered to be the most interesting city of them all. The city has challenging terrain, but engineers and city planners have often proved that they can find ingenious solutions to such problems.

Line 3 is the world’s longest monorail line at 67 kilometres long, stretching from Yudong in the south of the city to Jiangbei International Airport Terminal 2; this does not include the 11 km branch line extension from Bijin to Jurenba. This offers a ride through many of the more mountainous areas of the city, but for a slightly scarier experience there is also the cable-car system; which now solely crosses over the Yangtze river. The Jialing river cable car has been sadly missed by the locals ever since it was retired from service in 2011.

Image Source: nextshark.com

Chongqing’s urban transportation system has featured in the international press many times in recent years for many bizarre reasons. One is a station that is said to be built in the middle of nowhere – Caojiawan Station. It has no major roads or public transportation networks connected to it. To criticise it as an example of bad civil planning could be unfair as it has most likely been built in anticipation of future city expansion plans in Chongqing, where many formerly rural suburbs are increasingly finding themselves swallowed by the rapid growth of the city’s many different, spread out urban areas. Still, if you want to see the spectacle of China’s loneliest subway station in all its glory, you may need to visit it quickly before the property developers inevitably move in.

They don’t call Chongqing the ‘Mountain City’ for nothing; the Caijia Rail Transit bridge crosses the Jialing River Valley at 100 metres above water level. This bridge is located on Line 6, where the deepest subway station in China can also be found. Hongtudi station goes 31 stories and 60 metres below ground; for context, most bomb shelters that are constructed only go down about a third as deep. It takes roughly 3 minutes to get from ground level to the platform via the escalators.

Image Source: gagrule.net

Perhaps even more famous in the Western press than the two stations and the bridge mentioned above is Liziba station which passes through the 9^th floor of a high rise apartment building. This results in regular increases of single use tickets during national holidays; which are usually purchased by members of tour groups that do not intend to use the Metro for transportation purposes.

Image Source: en.mogaznews.com

What the tourists may not be aware of that this station has its very own resident dog. 15-year-old ‘Xiong Xiong’ follows his owner to the station at around 8pm each day without fail; he will then wait at Exit B for about 12 hours until his owner returns home from work. Remarkably, the dog is very well behaved despite not wearing a collar or leash. Although he never seems to get aggressive, he also never responds to strangers petting him and calling and he totally refuses to eat any food that is offered to him by anybody except his owner.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beijing_Subway

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MTR

https://www.theworldofchinese.com/2014/09/five-facts-you-never-knew-about-the-beijing-subway/

https://www.driveontheleft.com/shenzhen-transportation-guide-get-around-city/

http://www.guangzhoutravelguide.com/guangzhou-metro/guangfo-line

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhujiang_New_Town_Automated_People_Mover_System

http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2440127&CategoryId=12396

https://www.thatsmags.com/china/post/27495/guangzhou-metro-is-china-s-busiest-subway-system

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shanghai_maglev_train

https://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/chongqing/subway/line3.htm

https://nextshark.com/caojiawan-subway-stop-china/

https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/chongqing-china-metro-station-nowhere/index.html

https://www.sidehustlechongqing.com/home/2018/3/2/liziba-station-becomes-a-popular-scenic-spot-in-chongqing

https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/chinas-deepest-subway-station-under-construction-1728212

http://shanghaiist.com/2017/07/19/chinas-deepest-subway-station/

https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d4d6a4d7867444e/share_p.html

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/china/article-5686163/Loyal-dog-waits-train-station-owner-come-home-day-wins-hearts-China.html

https://www.myfavouritelens.com/chongqings-cable-car/

http://www.chongqing-guide.com/sightseeing/cable-car.html

http://en.people.cn/90001/90782/90872/7304579.html

 https://www.tylin.com/en/projects/caijia_rail_transit_bridge

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