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Calls go out to expand subway capacity
By Zha Minjie |
July 17, 2009, Friday
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Print Edition
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EXPERTS and commuters suggested to Metro management that capacity be increased during rush hours after Metro Line 2 suffered its longest breakdown ever on Wednesday morning.
Line 2 is expected to experience increased passenger flows once Line 7 and Line 11 are put into service by the end of this year, said Shentong Metro Group, the city's Metro authority.
Shentong Metro is concerned that Line 2 is vulnerable to more malfunctions as breakdowns were sometimes attributed to overloaded carriages.
Sun Zhang, an expert from the Institute of Railway and Urban Rail Transit of Tongji University, said more trains should be put into service.
"The minimum time limit for intervals between trains is about one-and-a-half minutes, so there is still room for more trains," he said yesterday.
Intervals between trains on Line 2 now are a little more than three minutes between 7am and 9am.
If more trains are running they will be less crowded and that might lead to fewer problems such as door malfunctions, Sun said.
Passengers welcomed the idea of shorter intervals during rush hours.
"I would be glad to have a smooth and fast journey on a less congested carriage when I go to work in the morning," said Xu Xiaohua, a passenger who boarded Line 2 at Zhongshan Park Station.
Line 2 carries more than 1 million people each day, almost 25 percent of total daily passenger flow on all eight lines now in service.
However, the Metro authority said it takes time. All the new trains also need to be tested before being put into service.
"We need to test all new trains thoroughly to avoid problems that could offset the increase in capacity," said Lan Tian, an official with Shentong Metro Group.
Lan stressed that the authority will do its best to reduce breakdowns.
Line 2 is expected to experience increased passenger flows once Line 7 and Line 11 are put into service by the end of this year, said Shentong Metro Group, the city's Metro authority.
Shentong Metro is concerned that Line 2 is vulnerable to more malfunctions as breakdowns were sometimes attributed to overloaded carriages.
Sun Zhang, an expert from the Institute of Railway and Urban Rail Transit of Tongji University, said more trains should be put into service.
"The minimum time limit for intervals between trains is about one-and-a-half minutes, so there is still room for more trains," he said yesterday.
Intervals between trains on Line 2 now are a little more than three minutes between 7am and 9am.
If more trains are running they will be less crowded and that might lead to fewer problems such as door malfunctions, Sun said.
Passengers welcomed the idea of shorter intervals during rush hours.
"I would be glad to have a smooth and fast journey on a less congested carriage when I go to work in the morning," said Xu Xiaohua, a passenger who boarded Line 2 at Zhongshan Park Station.
Line 2 carries more than 1 million people each day, almost 25 percent of total daily passenger flow on all eight lines now in service.
However, the Metro authority said it takes time. All the new trains also need to be tested before being put into service.
"We need to test all new trains thoroughly to avoid problems that could offset the increase in capacity," said Lan Tian, an official with Shentong Metro Group.
Lan stressed that the authority will do its best to reduce breakdowns.
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