A round up of Shanghai metro news!

1. Metro Line 11 and the eastern extension to Line 9 opened on December 31st. Both have limited opening times initially. Check www.exploreshanghai.com for all the details, including first and last train times, and journey planning/prices for the new lines.
2. Metro Line 6 now has longer opening times! Trains leave Gangcheng Road between 5:36 and 22:00 and leave South Lingyan Road between 5:48 and 22:12.
3. Planning to interchange Line 9 and Line 1 at Xujiahui? You’ll have a long walk for now. The planned interchange passageway is not open yet, so for now you’ll need to leave the station and re-enter. This is free with a Shanghai Public Transportation Card
4. The Shanghai Metro Company have launched a new “traffic light” system for the network. Green shows trains are operating normally, yellow shows delays, red shows serious issues/shutdowns. You can check the current state of the network here
5. Later in January, Jiyang Road station will open, providing an interchange between line 6 and line 8 (see below). You won’t be able to access the station from ground level, only interchange.

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We’ve just launched updates to ExploreShanghai and ExploreGuangzhou, the best online metro maps for the Shanghai Metro and Guangzhou Metro.

In Shanghai, Line 11 and Line 9 phase 2 will open on Thursday but you can start exploring the new site now! Every new station has a Metropedia entry with a location map, photos and journey details, for example Xiaonanmen. We’ve also updated our popular PDF maps with new versions in English and Chinese.

In Guangzhou, Line 5 opened on 28 December, as well as an additional station at Chebeinan on Line 4. You can view the new map, and start planning routes at ExploreGuangzhou.

There may be a few glitches initially, for example we currently don’t have price information for journeys including the new lines. If you have any feedback, do contact us!

An update for our ExploreShanghai iPhone app should be available in the next couple of weeks, once the update is approved by Apple.

With the Shanghai World Expo just months away, several new lines will be opening up over the next few months! We’re already seen Line 7 enter trial operation, and the next two lines to open are the extension to Line 9, and the brand new Line 11.

The opening date is December 31st, but we thought we’d give you a sneak preview now! Both lines will initially run for trial operation between approximately 9am and 4.30pm.

Line 9 (colored light blue) currently runs from Songjiang in western Shanghai to Yishan Road. The new extension will add 9 new stations, including key interchanges with Line 1 at Xujiahui, Line 7 at Zhaojiabang Road, Line 8 at Lujiabang Road, and a mammoth four-line interchange at Century Avenue where lines 2,4,6, and 9 will now intersect! The station at Madang Road will also be important for the Expo, as you’ll be able to pass through security checks there, then board Line 13 straight into the EXPO Zone!

Line 11 (colored dark brown) starts from Jiangsu Road on Line 2, then heads northwest past Shanghai West Railway Station. Later in 2010, a branch line will open to the Shanghai F1 Circuit and Anting. Initially only the line towards North Jiading will be open.

Check out the map below for the locations of the new lines.

Note, as mentioned above, the opening times are limited initially, and will be extended gradually over the next few months. Also, for changing between lines 1 and 9 at Xujiahui, initially you will need to exit the fare-gates and re-enter. This is free if you have a Shanghai Public Transportation Card.

Expect an update to exploreshanghai.com very soon with the new lines!

The latest 1.1 update to our ExploreShanghai iPhone app is now live on the iTunes App Store.

The new version includes the recently opened Shanghai Metro Line 7. You can plan routes, check ticket prices and check the times of the first and last trains for all the new stations. We also fixed some bugs which were causing occasional crashes. If you have any feedback on the app, do get in touch!

ExploreShanghai 1.1 is a free update for existing users. You’ll receive a prompt in iTunes to update to the new version. If you haven’t downloaded ExploreShanghai yet, it’s still available at the introductory price of just $0.99. More details and download

Shanghai’s Metro Line 7 opens today! We’ve just pushed live an update to exploreshanghai.com with the new line.

What’s included:

• A nice new orange line!
• Routeplanning information: just drag between each station
• A Metropedia article for every station with info, routes, pictures and maps
• Mandarin pronunciations for every station
• First and last train times for each station (be careful, trains stop just after 4pm initially!)

Update 7th December

• Updated ticket prices for all journeys
• Improved route-planning for Line 7
• Locality maps for every Line 7 stations in Metropedia

Coming soon

• An update to our ExploreShanghai iPhone app is currently in review by Apple

Shanghai Metro 7 will begin trial operation on 5th December. Initially, trains will run between 9am and 4pm, with the operation times increasing over time. Line 7 is a north-south line, from Shanghai University to Huamu Road. Snaking its way through Shanghai’s centre, it adds many new interchange opportunities, including at Jing’an Temple with line 2 and Changshu Road with line 1, before crossing the river into Pudong and intersecting with Longyang Road (for the Maglev).

We’re busy preparing exploreshanghai.com for the launch of the new line. See below for a sneak preview of the new map!

Beijing Subway Line 4 will open on September 25, according to reports! Line 4 is run by Hong Kong’s MTR Corporation, but is fully integrated with the rest of the network (including the standard 2 RMB fare). We’ve just pushed out an update to our ExploreBeijing site with the new line.
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Today Shanghai’s Metro Line 8 opened its second phase. The previous southern terminus was Yaohua Road in Pudong. The new route travels 14.2km into Pudong to the Aerospace Museum.

The full list of new stations, from North to South is
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The official names for the Shanghai Metro Line 10 stations have been announced. The line runs from Hongqiao Airport, through the centre of Shanghai, via such landmarks as Xintiandi, the Yu Garden and Shanghai Zoo, ending at Jiangwan New Town in north Shanghai. There are multiple interchanges with existing lines, see below for details!

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Since Shanghai Metro Line 9 opened last year, the stretch from Guilin Road to Yishan Road has been served only by a shuttle bus.

No more: as of 28 December 2008, you can now take a Line 9 metro train directly to/from Yishan Road, where you can interchange with Line 3 and Line 4.

The Explore Shanghai metro map has been updated to show this new connection. If you drag between two stations to plot a route, you’ll now see the new faster times.

Update January 2010 Line 9 was extended to Century Avenue in Pudong