Han Ximin

    ximhan@126.com

    MORE than 20 new trains, 49 new stations and 171 drivers are ready for the launch of two brand-new Metro lines, 7 and 9, which will start operating tomorrow.

    For the opening of the two lines, Shenzhen Metro Group has replaced maps and signs at 124 existing subway stations and prepared 550,000 brochures to hand out to riders of the new lines.

    The drivers have completed one year’s training and a 50-day test run has shown the new lines are ready and up to national standards in terms of punctuality and service reliability, Zhong Wenwen, vice manager with Shenzhen Metro Operation Headquarters, said yesterday.

    The new lines will operate between 6:30 a.m. and 11 p.m. with trains arriving at 10-minute intervals during the initial six months of operation. The intervals will be shortened to five minutes within a year and to around four minutes within two years.

    The 30-km Line 7 travels across Shenzhen in a “V” shape, starting from Xili in Nanshan District and ending at Tai’an Road in Luohu District after going through Futian District. It has 28 stations, including 10 interchange stations. Passengers can change to Line 1, Line 11 and Line 9 at Chegongmiao Station, Line 5 at Xili and Tai’an stations, Line 2 at Antuo Hill and Huaqiang North stations, Line 3 at Shixia, Huaxin and Tianbei stations, Line 4 at Fumin Station and Line 9 at Hongling North Station.

    An entire single journey will take around 55 minutes. It has a stop at Huanggang Checkpoint, one of the largest land checkpoints in China and the only checkpoint in Shenzhen that is open 24 hours a day, where tourists can easily cross the border to enter Hong Kong.

    Dubbed “Tech Line,” Line 7 adopts state-of-the-art technologies to reduce vibration and noise for the sake of residents, hospitals and schools along the line, according to the Metro company.

    Line 9 runs from Hongshuwan in Nanshan District to Wenjin in Luohu District, with 22 stations. The line will be 25.46 kilometers long, running through Nanshan, Futian and Luohu districts. It has stops near Mangrove park, Xiasha, Meilin, MixC Mall and Dongmen area. An end-to-end trip takes 45 minutes. At Wenjin Station, passengers will be able to change to future Metro Line 8 to get to the Meisha area in eastern part of the city.

    The opening of the two new lines tomorrow will bring the city’s Metro network to 285 kilometers, according to an earlier report.