8 things you didn’t know about the Shanghai Metro

We recently contributed to CNNGo’s article Another 51 things you may not know about Shanghai – but should. Here’s our selection of facts about the Shanghai Metro!

39. Shanghai’s circular Metro Line 4 was originally not a circle. During construction in 2003, the section under the Huangpu river collapsed, though no-one was injured. It took until 2007 to open the final section from Damuqiao Lu to Lancun Lu.

40. Several of Shanghai’s Metro lines have been given unofficial nicknames. Line 10 is the “Golden Line” as it links many of the city’s tourist attractions like Yuyuan and Xintiandi. Line 6 has been dubbed the “Hello Kitty Line” due to its lurid pink livery.
41. The longest possible journey on the Shanghai Metro is between Pudong International Airport on Line 2 and Anting on Line 11. The journey takes around two and a quarter hours and costs RMB 10. In the time it takes to get to Anting, you could fly to Japan!

42. Shanghai now has the longest metro system in the world, with 420km of track (260 miles), overtaking the London Underground’s 408km. It took London 140 years to reach this length, Shanghai did it in 15 years.

43. The Shanghai Metro has a mascot, a small blue robot called Chang Chang. Its name means “smooth traffic” in Chinese.

44. Due to overcrowding on Shanghai Metro Line 8, staff have been employed to push extra people into carriages at peak times.

45. On some Metro lines, a snippet of music from “Going Home” by saxophonist Kenny G is played at the terminal station. This piece of music is also played in some Chinese schools to mark the end of the day.

46. A number of oddly dressed people have been spotted by Chinese netizens on the Shanghai Metro. In recent years ‘Leopard Print Man,’ a robot, Superman, and an Egyptian mummy have all been spotted riding the subway.

Read the full article on CNNgo


ExploreMetro makes Asia’s best metro maps. Find out about our apps for iPhone and apps for Android!