20 years on the fast track (2)

Shanghai has one of the fastest growing passenger volume in the world.

The city's 12 subway lines transport an average of more than 7 million people daily.

Twenty years ago, Line 1 handled just 1.06 million riders in the whole year.

Yu Wei takes a picture of Wang Yuanyuan on a train on Metro Line 1 in Shanghai yesterday. Each holds a framed picture taken exactly 20 years ago when they were among a host of primary school students celebrating the opening of the south section of the city's first subway line. The city's 12 subway lines now transport an average of more than 7 million people daily. Twenty years ago, Line 1 handled just 1.06 million riders in its first year. Metro construction is picking up in suburban areas, authorities say, with about 30 kilometers of new track every year. Three extended sections will open this year.(Shanghai Daily)
But not everything is rosy. Metro lines 6 and 8 regularly deals with the problem of overcrowded carriages and frequent breakdowns as the authorities have little time for maintenance.

"Almost all the trains are running round the clock," Liu said. He said workers in four shifts toil more than 10 hours a day to ensure the smooth operation of more than 3,000 subway carriages.

Recent efforts to restrict passengers have drawn complaints and criticisms. But it seems to be the only solution as some stations have smaller platforms, and adding carriages will simply not work.

Gu said the signal system was also being upgraded to cut the interval time between trains down to two minutes and 90 seconds during the rush hours.

He promised that future stations and the ones under construction will be larger and wider with more room for transit.

But for now, it was a reason to celebrate.

"What a wonderful memory," said the 41-year-old Cao Jian, the driver of the first Train No. 101 twenty years ago as he stood inside the carriage as one of the guests yesterday.

"Another 20 years, and the line will see my retirement."

Behind Cao, some passengers looked at the old pictures of the line while the young rushed to work, but rarely if any noticed the driver who made history.

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