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Beijing subway slasher adds element of terror to already crowded commutes
By Zhang Zihan Source:Global Times Published: 2012-12-31 0:39:08
The blood at Tuanjiehu subway station on December 12. Photo: weibo.com
The word capital in Chinese is shoudu, which can also mean "the most crowded city." The crowds mean big traffic jams, but congestion wasn't the only transportation news in Beijing last year.
In February, Beijing finally said farewell to the city's last old trains on Subway Line 1, although for some their unbearably sweaty and sticky memories will linger. Those trains had been running in Beijing for 40 years, and were known as "sardine cans" for their lack of air-conditioning.
While air conditioning is important, so is running on schedule. In February local commuters appealed to Beijing's subway companies to provide more punctual service.
The safety of the subways came under criticism by the end of 2012, when women were slashed by an unemployed man attempting to vent his fury after a love affair ended. Five cases were discussed on Weibo, though Beijing police as usual refused to reveal the number of victims to the public.
Beijing subway authorities did not give a clear answer about how the security check system failed to find a man bringing a dangerous object into the subways - the same thing happened in November when a man brought a leaking gas can onto Line 5.
Despite these shocking stories, Beijing is still determined to develop its subway system. A further 100 billion yuan ($16 billion) will be spent building 200 more kilometers of subway lines in the future, making it one of the world's longest subway networks. This probably is the best way of solving the city's traffic jams, especially on holidays and weekends. For example, when October's National Holiday ended, the traffic volume on Beijing's highways reached 13 million vehicles over the eight-day vacation.
Beijing now has more than five million cars, but only 2.48 million parking spaces, and 55,000 roadside parking spaces. For Beijing's drivers, finding a place to park is killing them after they've already spent hours in traffic jams. However, they still have to tackle fake traffic attendants pretending to be legal parking staff to ask for money.
The word capital in Chinese is shoudu, which can also mean "the most crowded city." The crowds mean big traffic jams, but congestion wasn't the only transportation news in Beijing last year.
In February, Beijing finally said farewell to the city's last old trains on Subway Line 1, although for some their unbearably sweaty and sticky memories will linger. Those trains had been running in Beijing for 40 years, and were known as "sardine cans" for their lack of air-conditioning.
While air conditioning is important, so is running on schedule. In February local commuters appealed to Beijing's subway companies to provide more punctual service.
The safety of the subways came under criticism by the end of 2012, when women were slashed by an unemployed man attempting to vent his fury after a love affair ended. Five cases were discussed on Weibo, though Beijing police as usual refused to reveal the number of victims to the public.
Beijing subway authorities did not give a clear answer about how the security check system failed to find a man bringing a dangerous object into the subways - the same thing happened in November when a man brought a leaking gas can onto Line 5.
Despite these shocking stories, Beijing is still determined to develop its subway system. A further 100 billion yuan ($16 billion) will be spent building 200 more kilometers of subway lines in the future, making it one of the world's longest subway networks. This probably is the best way of solving the city's traffic jams, especially on holidays and weekends. For example, when October's National Holiday ended, the traffic volume on Beijing's highways reached 13 million vehicles over the eight-day vacation.
Beijing now has more than five million cars, but only 2.48 million parking spaces, and 55,000 roadside parking spaces. For Beijing's drivers, finding a place to park is killing them after they've already spent hours in traffic jams. However, they still have to tackle fake traffic attendants pretending to be legal parking staff to ask for money.
Posted in: Society, Metro Beijing