Han Ximin

ximhan@126.com

FOUR Metro lines, 2, 8, 6 and 10, have implemented new operating schedules, cutting the intervals between departures, and starting the first trains earlier by up to 30 minutes.

For the trains on Line 2 and 8 from Yantian Road Station to Qiaoxiang Station, the first morning trains will start up to 30 minutes ahead of previous schedules, Shenzhen Metro Group said Monday.

The intervals for train departures were shortened to 5 minutes from 5 minutes and 40 seconds on Line 10 between Futian Checkpoint Station and Xuexiang Station during morning and evening rush hours. The intervals between Xuexiang and Shuangyongjie stations were cut from 11 minutes and 20 seconds to 10 minutes. During the off-peak hours, the intervals of Line 10 were cut from 7 minutes to 6 minutes and 40 seconds.

The first morning trains on Line 2 and 8 running to Chiwan from stations between Yantian Road Station and Qiaoxiang Station were made earlier by 10-30 minutes. At Yantian Road Station, the train service starts at 6:12 a.m. At Xinxiu Station, the first train departs at 6:08 a.m. At some other stations like Grand Theater, Yannan, Huaqiang North and Gangxia North, the train departures are 30 minutes earlier than previous.

For the weekend service, the operator extended the trains’ wait time at Futian Station and stations between Shenwai Senior Campus and Liantang Checkpoint by 5-10 seconds on Line 2 and 8 to better fit the needs of the passengers during the weekend, in addition to maintaining 4-minute intervals of train departures in the direction from Chiwan to Yantian Road.

On weekends, the intervals for departures on Line 6 and 10 were also cut to 5 minutes and 35 seconds and 6 minutes, respectively, during rush hours.

Since the start of operation of the new lines Oct. 28, the 10 lines of Shenzhen Metro Group had handled 5.85 million passenger trips daily by Dec. 3, up by 13 percent over the same period of last year.

A report in October showed Metro service of Shenzhen Metro Group made up 51.6 percent of commuters using public transportation.