Chinese New Year and HSR

[bikkuri bahn]

Some here may be aware that it's the Chinese New Year season, and the annual movement of millions of migrant workers to their hometowns for the holidays (in Japan, the equivalent would have been dekasegi going home for New Year's prior to Jan. 1, mainly to the Tohoku region, who were once served by the fleet of night trains which converged on Ueno Station).  But the much touted HSR system has been under the microscope in how it handles/mishandles this transport need:

 

http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5gcufNNWv4Pkji63zsYmEtGTcgLPQ?docId=5829198

 

http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2011/02/high-speed_rail_china

 

Seemingly in response, govt. controlled Xinhua news has released a positive report:

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-02/04/c_13719070.htm

 

I saw a news report on Fuji TV on location in China, where a news reporter followed a young man returning to his hometown.  All HSR tickets were sold out (all HSR trains are reserved seating).  He purchased a regular ticket (loco-hauled train), but with no seat reservation.  He was forced to ride standing or sitting on the floor for the whole 9 hours of his journey home, with the train increasingly crowded with each station stop.  Being a young fellow though, I suppose he could handle it- I have seen similar conditions (tho with less luggage) on night express trains in holiday periods I rode back in early JR days- mainly student types- everyone else rides the shinkansen.

[Martijn Meerts]

I've experienced similar conditions in Germany on a regular twice-an-hour express train, and that wasn't even during rush hour, weekend or holiday season ;)

[KenS]

If you ever ride the Acela Express through NYC around 5 - 6 PM, don't leave your seat.  Although it's theoretically not over-sold, Business class isn't reserved seating, and there's always a few idiots using the seat next to them as a desk (or more than a few), so you see standees milling about for several stations out of the city.  I'm convinced they do oversell it. And while I've never ridden one, I gather the ordinary coach-seating trains (which are oversold) are packed to the gills on the pre-Thanksgiving runs when everyone is headed home or to relatives for the holiday.

 

To some extent, overcrowding at peak times is going to be a problem with any public transportation system.  You can't afford to build/operate it for the maximum possible loading if you want to keep it profitable or at least manageably subsidized (just like you can't build urban highways for the worst possible traffic load).  The mark of a good operator lies in minimizing such problems, particularly on premium services such as expresses.

[Mudkip Orange]

(just like you can't build urban highways for the worst possible traffic load)

 

Shhh... Don't tell this to Texas DOT

[KenS]

Texas builds 'em big, but I've still been caught in a traffic jam in Dallas.  Maybe not as often as in the SF bay or the Northeast (and don't get me started on the DC beltway), but even the oil barons can't afford all the highway they need.

[brill27mcb]

(just like you can't build urban highways for the worst possible traffic load)

 

Shhh... Don't tell this to Texas DOT

 

There is a famous quote from Tommy Thompson, who was then the governor of Wisconsin, to the effect that "building more lanes of highway to cure congestion is like loosening your belt to cure obesity."

 

Rich K.

[quashlo]

I suggest watching this NHK documentary about the Lunar New Year rush home... This was last Lunar New Year.

(Japanese audio with Simplified Chinese subs)

http://www.56.com/u61/v_NTc5MDg5Nzg.html

[Nozomi4ever]

Some here may be aware that it's the Chinese New Year season, and the annual movement of millions of migrant workers to their hometowns for the holidays (in Japan, the equivalent would have been dekasegi going home for New Year's prior to Jan. 1, mainly to the Tohoku region, who were once served by the fleet of night trains which converged on Ueno Station).  But the much touted HSR system has been under the microscope in how it handles/mishandles this transport need:

 

http://www.google.com/hostednews/canadianpress/article/ALeqM5gcufNNWv4Pkji63zsYmEtGTcgLPQ?docId=5829198

 

http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulliver/2011/02/high-speed_rail_china

 

Seemingly in response, govt. controlled Xinhua news has released a positive report:

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2011-02/04/c_13719070.htm

 

I saw a news report on Fuji TV on location in China, where a news reporter followed a young man returning to his hometown.  All HSR tickets were sold out (all HSR trains are reserved seating).  He purchased a regular ticket (loco-hauled train), but with no seat reservation.  He was forced to ride standing or sitting on the floor for the whole 9 hours of his journey home, with the train increasingly crowded with each station stop.  Being a young fellow though, I suppose he could handle it- I have seen similar conditions (tho with less luggage) on night express trains in holiday periods I rode back in early JR days- mainly student types- everyone else rides the shinkansen.

 

haha.. China is like that. HSR in China are very disorganized. They can delay up to two hours for no reason at all!

Here 's what I experience from China HSRs...(Very bad impression)

-Seats looks worn out even though the train is still quite new (In Both First and Second class)

-China 's HSR experience is a nightmare! You are forced to wait at the waiting hall and stuck you there till the train arrives and kept on make boring train annoucements to bore you!!(Takes more than 1 hour TBH with this process ) 

-Service staff onboard are very rude and don't bother checking tickets to see if you are seated in the right class of the carriage.

-China HSR stations looks new and modern on the exterior but looks crap when you entered their washroom! (Very dirty , no western-style toilets at all) and of course overpriced crap food served in the restaurants and cafeteria in the stations