Kevin Keqing Liu

kevinkqliu@gmail.com

SHH…, would you please be quiet?

Within terminals of airports all over China, loudspeakers are always heard announcing once every few minutes: “Dear passengers, may I have your attention please: Flight No. ABCD to XX is now boarding. Would you please get your tickets and boarding passes ready, and bring your luggage, to board the aircraft through Gate No. YY? We wish you a pleasant journey. Thank you.” The announcement is made in Mandarin and English. At airports within the province of Guangdong, a third announcement in Cantonese, a local dialect, is also made.

This repeats hundreds of times, maybe a thousand, a day. The airport authorities wish the passengers a pleasant journey. But the high-decibel level, nonstop noises already make passengers feel their experience unpleasant in the first place; it also asks for passengers’ attention but hardly anyone pays attention to it because everyone – well, almost everyone – is aware of his or her flight’s status.

Environmental pollution that China has been attempting to reduce under the “Beautiful China” program includes sound pollution, and airports – icons of cities – should take the lead in such an endeavor.

I sympathize with the employees working in such a noisy environment who often told me that they also want a change but it’s only the boss that can issue a new order.

Sometimes I suggested they report to their superiors that passengers are complaining and are asking they follow the model of airports in Seoul and Hong Kong, where such loudspeaker announcements have been abandoned for many years. They responded that overseas air travelers have had more flight experience and don’t need the oral notification there. I became curious as to why the announcement in English is made, apparently targeting “experienced” overseas air travelers.

Some staff also explained that a certain number of Chinese air travelers are first-timers and need such announcements. But they can’t provide statistics of what percentage such first-timers are.

The 21st century is an era of information. Dynamic flight information is available everywhere – LED screens, smartphone apps, and websites. In the rare cases where some people do miss their flight, it’s them who must be responsible for the consequence.

It’s also a joke to remind passengers to get their boarding passes and tickets ready; it’s even ridiculous to tell them not to forget their luggage, as it involves simple common sense. Should the announcement also add “Before boarding, please go to the toilet when necessary as the toilet space on the crowded plane is too small?”

If the airport managers believe that the loudspeaker announcement is a must, it may well be shortened to “Flight No. 1234 to Shanghai is now boarding through Gate 56,” to avoid junk information.

Alternatively, authorities may select a mid-size airport and halt the loudspeaker announcements for three months to test how many passengers have missed their flights. If the rate is nominal or zero, the practice may well gradually be expanded to other airports. Only emergencies necessitate loudspeaker announcements.

Airports aren’t alone. All over China, in the waiting halls of many railway stations, it’s almost unbearable that even much louder similar announcements are made that echo in the spacious buildings; in subway stations, the loudspeakers on the two ends of escalators urge passengers in Chinese and English over and over again, absolutely without stop, and with lots of junk information: “Dear passengers: The escalators are running. Please stand firmly. Hold the handrail. Please also take good care of your children and the elderly. Have a good trip. Thank you.” In some supermarkets, the loudspeakers announce discounts from the ceiling, with shoppers having nowhere to escape.

In noisy places that unfortunately include restaurants, people are forced to talk loudly to enable others to hear clearly, which makes the environment even noisier, creating a vicious circle.

Let the “Beautiful China” endeavor start with a quiet China, as this can be easily and quickly achieved, and at no cost.

(The author, a former bank professional, is now a business executive who has been published in English and Chinese in the China mainland, Hong Kong SAR, Germany and Singapore.)