Shenzhen mulls priority carriage for subway rush hours

A revision of a draft regulation is soliciting public opinion on whether to set up a priority carriage on subway trains in Shenzhen, Beijing Youth Daily reported.

The revision on facilitating civilized behavior in Shenzhen was published on the official website of the Standing Committee of Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress on Sept 2.

An entry reads that a priority carriage can be set up on subway trains. During rush hours, only disabled people, children, women and people with special concerns can ride the priority carriage. Subway station staff should direct other people away from the priority carriage.

The entry added disabled people, children and people with special concerns apart from women compared with the previous regulation.

The revised draft aroused discussion on the internet.

Some expressed support of the change from a female-priority carriage to a priority carriage, while some expressed their worries. Sometimes disabled, pregnant and other passengers who need help do not go into a carriage alone, but if their companion is a man, he cannot enter the priority carriage. Some doubt the executability of the regulation. Shenzhen has piloted female-priority subway cars since 2017, but many photos uploaded on the internet showed that priority seats are occupied by men.

Whether the entry will be included into the regulation depends on public feedback, said an official with the Standing Committee of Shenzhen Municipal People's Congress.