China’s subway ridership plunges 40% as Covid spreads
Published on: Monday, December 26, 2022
By:
Nikkei, FMT
The drop was particularly pronounced in Shanghai, with ridership falling 45% from two weeks earlier. (AP pic)
GUANGZHOU: Subway ridership is declining in China as the relaxation of its zero-Covid policy drives up infections, dropping roughly 40% in 10 major cities in the two weeks since the easing began.
Passengers in these cities, including Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, totalled 20.26 million based on Wednesday’s 7-day moving average – down 36% from Dec 7, when the figure came to 31.66 million.
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Users increased in the first week but began to decline on Dec 15.
The drop was particularly pronounced in Shanghai, where locals rely heavily on the subway, with ridership falling 45% as of Wednesday from two weeks earlier.
The spread of telecommuting and online learning appears to have contributed to the decrease. As surging Covid-19 cases cause worker shortages and cut customer traffic, some stores are reducing hours or temporarily shutting down.
“My co-worker has a fever, so I have to handle the store alone today,” said a coffee shop clerk who was posting a notice of shorter business hours.
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Shanghai on Friday eased isolation rules for Covid patients recuperating at home and urged those who have recovered to return to work.
Ridership in the southern city of Guangzhou was down 40% as of Wednesday. After imposing strict restrictions in November, including lockdowns in some areas, the city began easing the rules at the end of that month.
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The city’s ridership was on the rise in early December but started falling again once infections began to spread. During the November lockdowns, some migrant workers and students returned to their hometowns, contributing to the decline in passengers.
“Customer traffic in December is less than half of November,” said a woman who runs a bar in Guangzhou. “I won’t offer food for the time being, because most of it goes to waste. Customers can bring their own food if they want.”
Ridership on Wednesday was down from two weeks earlier in nine cities, except Chongqing, but the number of passengers increased for a fourth consecutive day in Beijing. Some see it as a sign of recovery as recovered workers return to the job. But the number is still less than a quarter that from a year earlier.
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