Shanghai maglev operates well

The world's first commercially operated maglev line has been running well with its ticket revenue rising after a big price reduction, the municipal government spokesperson Jiao Yang said.

The maglev has carried atotal of 200,000 passengers and raked in a revenue of 3 million yuan (US$361,000) since April 15 when the operator lowered previously disputed prices, or 150 yuan for a round trip and 75 yuan for a single ticket, to a moderate level of 50 yuan for a single ticket and 80 yuan for a return ticket.

Based on that price depreciation, airplane passengers can get a further 80 percent discount by showing their passenger tickets. The maglev line was designed to link the Pudong Airport, one of the two airports in Shanghai, to the downtown.

Statistics show that passenger flows doubled after the price reduction, reaching 8,000 per day, according to the spokesman.

Jiao said the designers of the maglev had foreseen the problem and had taken effective, sufficient measures to control possible subgrade settlement, and a flexible, adjustable piers have been developed in Shanghai to cope with the problem.

The maglev will run as scheduled during the period of implementing settlement solution measures, as the settlement in few points will pose no safety danger but affect lightly passenger comforts, the spokesman added.

Source: Xinhua