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Metro won't raise fares despite deficit
By Yang Jian |
February 2, 2013, Saturday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
SHANGHAI'S subway operation runs a deficit of some 800 million (US$128.32 million) every year, but the operator has no plans to increase the ticket price to bridge the loss, the city's traffic authority said yesterday.
The deficit is mainly from the huge cost of daily operation and maintenance on the trains and is covered by governmental subsidies, said Sun Jianping, director of the Shanghai Transport and Port Administration.
"The ticket prices for the city's subways and buses have no margin to increase, but it is also difficult for them to go down," Sun told local legislators yesterday.
The cost on public traffic accounts for 3 percent of the average annual income of local residents, and the percentage has kept dropping in recent years with the increase of the their incomes, according to Sun.
However, local legislators complained the ticket prices of subways and buses are still too high for local residents to afford. Shanghai's subway and bus tickets are too expensive compared with those of Beijing, said Li Feikang, a local legislator.
The city subway tickets cost from 3 yuan to 10 yuan, compared with the fixed price of 2 yuan in Beijing.
The legislator suggested the traffic authority allocate money from the city's monthly car plate auction to cut public transit costs. The city government has earned over 6 billion yuan from the auctions, according to Li. The price of a city car plate at the latest auction reached 75,000 yuan.
Sun also said a survey is to be completed later next month to decide whether to allow three more companies to charge for taxi reservations.
Qiangsheng, Haibo and Jinjiang have proposed to charge 4 yuan for reservations.
The deficit is mainly from the huge cost of daily operation and maintenance on the trains and is covered by governmental subsidies, said Sun Jianping, director of the Shanghai Transport and Port Administration.
"The ticket prices for the city's subways and buses have no margin to increase, but it is also difficult for them to go down," Sun told local legislators yesterday.
The cost on public traffic accounts for 3 percent of the average annual income of local residents, and the percentage has kept dropping in recent years with the increase of the their incomes, according to Sun.
However, local legislators complained the ticket prices of subways and buses are still too high for local residents to afford. Shanghai's subway and bus tickets are too expensive compared with those of Beijing, said Li Feikang, a local legislator.
The city subway tickets cost from 3 yuan to 10 yuan, compared with the fixed price of 2 yuan in Beijing.
The legislator suggested the traffic authority allocate money from the city's monthly car plate auction to cut public transit costs. The city government has earned over 6 billion yuan from the auctions, according to Li. The price of a city car plate at the latest auction reached 75,000 yuan.
Sun also said a survey is to be completed later next month to decide whether to allow three more companies to charge for taxi reservations.
Qiangsheng, Haibo and Jinjiang have proposed to charge 4 yuan for reservations.
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