Fare hike debated for Beijing’s Public transport

Beijing public transport is developing rapidly, serving increasing numbers of passengers every year. As an example, the number of passengers who took the subway in 2013 reached 3.2 billion, a rise of 350% since 2007. As a consequence, the budget for the management of public transport in Beijing was reached 20 billion yuan last year.

Thus, the government plans to change the actual subway fare system based on a fixed rate for each trip to a system based on a progressive rate according to the distance traveled. On the city’s buses, the rate should rise from 1.3 yuan to 1.5 yuan per trip. Before applying these new measures, the Beijing authorities have invited a group of twenty-five experts, including officials, politicians, industrialists and citizens, to discuss public transportation rates and these new modes of payment, on 28 October 2014.