Category Archives: fun

How many stations are there on the Shanghai Metro?

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The Shanghai Metro is one of the longest metro stations in the world. How stations does it have, as of May 2013? That’s s slightly tricky question to answer, for a number of reasons:

Which lines to include?

For the purposes of this article, we’re including the twelve lines which provide regular metro service: that’s Lines 1 through 11, and Line 13. Line 12 is not yet open.

We don’t include the Jinshan Railway (“Line 22″), as the frequency of trains on the line is not high enough to constitute a rapid transit service, and there is no integrated ticketing with the rest of the network. Similarly, we exclude the Shanghai Maglev train.

Which stations to include?

We include all currently open stations.
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Card Checker: check the balance of your Shanghai Public Transportation Card on your iPhone

Now you can check the balance of your Shanghai Public Transportation Card on your iPhone, with our new app Card Checker for iPhone, iPod touch and iPad.

Card Checker is simple to use, simply enter the serial number of your card which is imprinted on the back. The app will connect to the internet and retrieve your most recent balance.

You only need to enter your card number once – after that, simply launch the app and it will immediately fetch your balance.

One caveat: we use official data from the Shanghai Public Transportation Card site, and there can sometimes be a 24-48 hour delay before changes in your balance are reflected in the app.

Card Checker is a perfect complement to our Explore Shanghai metro map app.

Card Checker is free forever -  download it now from the App Store.

Hong Kong MTR station names in Cantonese (Jyutping)

In the next version of Explore Hong Kong, we want to include the Cantonese transliterations, using the Jyutping transliteration system, for all Hong Kong MTR stations. Here’s a first attempt. If you have any corrections, do leave a note in the comments!

English Chinese Jyutping
Admiralty 金鐘 gam1 zung1
Airport 機場 gei1 coeng4
AsiaWorld-Expo 博覽館 bok3 laam5 gun2
Austin 柯士甸 o1 si6 din1
Causeway Bay 銅鑼灣 tung4 lo4 waan1
Central 中環 zung1 waan4
Chai Wan 柴灣 caai4 waan1
Che Kung Temple 車公廟 ce1 gung1 miu6
Cheung Sha Wan 長沙灣 coeng4 saa1 waan1
Choi Hung 彩虹 coi2 hung4
City One 第一城 dai6 jat1 sing4
Diamond Hill 鑽石山 zyun3 sek6 saan1
Disneyland Resort 迪士尼 dik6 si6 nei4
East Tsim Sha Tsui 尖東 zim1 dung1
Fanling 粉嶺 fan2 leng5
Fo Tan 火炭 fo2 taan3
Fortress Hill 炮台山 paau3 toi4 saan1
Hang Hau 坑口 haang1 hau2
Heng Fa Chuen 杏花邨 hang6 faa1 cyun1
Heng On 恆安 hang4 on1
Hong Kong 香港 hoeng1 gong2
Hung Hom 紅磡 hung4 ham3
Jordan 佐敦 zo2 deon1
Kam Sheung Road 錦上路 gam2 soeng6 lou6
Kowloon 九龍 gau2 lung4
Kowloon Bay 九龍灣 gau2 lung4 waan1
Kowloon Tong 九龍塘 gau2 lung4 tong4
Kwai Fong 葵芳 kwai4 fong1
Kwai Hing 葵興 kwai4 hing1
Kwun Tong 觀塘 gun1 tong4
Lai Chi Kok 荔枝角 lai6 zi1 gok3
Lai King 荔景 lai6 ging2
Lam Tin 藍田 laam4 tin4
Lo Wu 羅湖 lo4 wu4
LOHAS Park 康城 hong1 sing4
Lok Fu 樂富 lok6 fu3
Lok Ma Chau 落馬洲 lok6 maa5 zau1
Long Ping 朗屏 long5 ping4
Ma On Shan 馬鞍山 maa5 on1 saan1
Mei Foo 美孚 mei5 fu1
Mong Kok 旺角 wong6 gok3
Mong Kok East 旺角東 wong6 gok3 dung1
Nam Cheong 南昌 naam4 coeng1
Ngau Tau Kok 牛頭角 ngau4 tau4 gok3
North Point 北角 bak1 gok3
Olympic 奧運 ou3 wan6
Po Lam 寶琳 bou2 lam4
Prince Edward 太子 taai3 zi2
Quarry Bay 鰂魚涌 zak1 jyu4 cung1
Racecourse 馬場 maa5 coeng4
Sai Wan Ho 西灣河 sai1 waan1 ho2
Sha Tin 沙田 saa1 tin4
Sha Tin Wai 沙田圍 saa1 tin4 wai4
Sham Shui Po 深水埗 sam1 seoi2 bou2
Shau Kei Wan 筲箕灣 saau1 gei1 waan1
Shek Kip Mei 石硤尾 shek6 kip3 mei5
Shek Mun 石門 shek6 mun4
Sheung Shui 上水 soeng6 seoi2
Sheung Wan 上環 soeng6 waan4
Siu Hong 兆康 siu6 hong1
Sunny Bay 欣澳 jan1 ou3
Tai Koo 太古 taai3 ku2
Tai Po Market 大埔墟 daai6 bou3 heoi1
Tai Shui Hang 大水坑 daai6 seoi2 haang1
Tai Wai 大圍 daai3 wai4
Tai Wo 太和 taai3 wo4
Tai Wo Hau 大窩口 daai6 wo1 hau2
Tin Hau 天后 tin1 hau6
Tin Shui Wai 天水圍 tin1 seoi2 wai4
Tiu Keng Leng 調景嶺 tiu4 king2 leng5
Tseung Kwan O 將軍澳 zoeng1 gwan1 ou3
Tsim Sha Tsui 尖沙咀 zim1 saa1 zeoi2
Tsing Yi 青衣 cing1 ji1
Tsuen Wan 荃灣 cyun4 waan1
Tsuen Wan West 荃灣西 cyun4 waan1 sai1
Tuen Mun 屯門 tyun4 mun4
Tung Chung 東涌 dung1 cung1
University 大學 daai6 hok6
Wan Chai 灣仔 waan1 zai2
Wong Tai Sin 黃大仙 wong4 daai6 sin1
Wu Kai Sha 烏溪沙 wu1 kai1 saa1
Yau Ma Tei 油麻地 jau4 maa4 dei2
Yau Tong 油塘 jau4 tong4
Yuen Long 元朗 jyun4 long5

Tickets, please! Turn your old travel tickets into art

Do you have a stash of old tickets at home? Would you like to contribute to an amazing new artwork that will become part of a major exhibition?

Subway
Creative Commons License photo credit: bfishadow

The London Transport Museum is looking for used travel tickets to feature in their upcoming exhibition ‘Mind the Map: inspiring art, design and cartography’, which opens next year. This includes tickets for boat, train, bus, air travel and more.

Exploring the theme of transport maps and mapping, the exhibition will include historic and contemporary maps, whilst exploring the future of mapping, and will include newly commissioned artworks by Stephen Walter, Simon Patterson, Jeremy Wood, Claire Brewster and Helen Scalway.

Another artist featured is Susan Stockwell, whose work often uses of themes of maps and mapping, transforming recycled materials from everyday objects into beautiful artworks.

On this occasion Susan will be experimenting with used transport tickets to create a large-scale world map. The artwork will also explore the role of tickets as a memory or symbolic representation of a journey.

The Museum is currently working with Susan to collect used transport tickets from as many types of travel, of various, and from as many countries and timespans as possible. She is also collecting stories and memories related to the tickets, which are often kept as souvenirs or memento.

Please send any tickets and stories to:
Michelle Brown
London Transport Museum
39 Wellington Street
London
WC2E 7BB
michelle dot brown at ltmuseum dot co dot uk

 

The Shanghai Anagram Metro Map 2011

Happy Mid-Autumn festival to all ExploreMetro fans! Here’s a special holiday treat for you metro-lovers. We’ve made an anagrammed version of the 2011 Shanghai Metro map, scrambling the letters of the English names of all stations for comic effect.

Click below for the full PDF metro map, here are some of our favorites:

  • Haha, brainy girls = Shanghai Library
  • Huge Shoe healing Communist Ascendancy  = Shanghai Science and Technology Museum
  • Mouse came up arse = Aerospace Museum
  • Odd anagram = Madang Road

Back in 2008 I created the first anagrammed map of the Shanghai Metro. Since then the Shanghai Metro has added lots of new stations and lines and is now the longest metro system in the world, so I thought it was about time to bring the anagram map up to date!

Note for pedants: I used the common English name of the station as posted on signboards, spelling out directions e.g. South Lingyan Road. For some challenging stations (particularly the ones with lots of Xs and Zs I added “station” e.g. Dongjing Station -> Standing, I jog not.)