By Li Qian
BEIJING, Dec 16 (Xinhuanet) -- More subway trains will be added on lines to the suburbs to meet expected heavy demand on December 22, or winter solstice day when many people visit cemeteries in the city’s outlying regions.
The Shentong Metro Group said it expected lines 2 and 11 will be the two busiest on the network. It also said lines 5, 8 and 9 will be busier than usual on Sunday as it announced some restrictions.
Line 2 will only run between Xujingdong Station and Guanglan Road Station from 9am to 11am on Sunday, The Metro operator said.
There are several major cemeteries near Xujingdong Station.
Adjustments will also be made to Line 11 for the day.
The line branches out in two directions from Jiading Xincheng Station in Jiading District — one to North Jiading and the other to Kunshan City in neighboring Jiangsu Province. Usually the same number of trains are used on both routes.
But on Sunday from 7am to 2pm, one third of trains running to North Jiading Station will be diverted to the Kunshan route to cater to passengers visiting cemeteries.
Meanwhile, shuttle buses will operate this weekend from Metro stations along lines 2, 5, 8, 9 and 11 to 16 cemeteries in Jiading, Qingpu, Songjiang and Minhang districts and the Pudong New Area.
This year about 2.2 million people are expected to visit the tombs of deceased relatives from December 14 to 22, about double last year’s number.
Meanwhile, an estimated 208,000 vehicles will be used to visit cemeteries, according to the civil affairs authority.
Winter solstice, also known as dong zhi in Chinese, falls between December 21 and 23 in the northern hemisphere and marks the year’s shortest day.
Winter solstice and the Qingming Festival in early April are traditional occasions for Chinese to clean the tombs of their ancestors and make offerings.
(Source: Shanghai Daily)
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