Shanghai opens public transport after long closure

Shanghai opened parts of public transportation on Sunday that had been closed for two months. This is the first step toward lifting the city’s lockdown on June 1.

Shanghai opened a small part of the world’s longest metro system on Sunday, after closing a few lines for nearly two months. However, travelers needed strong reasons to travel, and many residents of the city of 25 million people are still not allowed to leave their homes, Reuters writes.

Shanghai opened parts of public transport

The authorities decided to lift the lockdown in the city within a week, on June 1. Until then, most restrictions will apply.

Shanghai’s 800-kilometre metro system was popular with the population with 7.7 million trips per day by 2020, or an annual throughput of 2.8 billion passengers.

To be able to participate in the system, passengers must now have their body temperature checked at the entrance and show negative PCR tests, taken within 48 hours.

Despite the closures, the city recently reopened stores and wholesale markets slowly letting more and more people go out.

There are fewer cases

Shanghai reported fewer than 700 daily cases on Sunday, with none outside the quarantine areas, as it has been for the past week. Meanwhile, the capital, Beijing, recorded 61 cases of infection, down from 70.

Chinese shutdowns continue to push factories around the world. As is known, many countries depend on Chinese products and this is beginning to appear in many places. Satellite data shows port activity in China’s ports has fallen to the same low levels as during the shutdowns two years ago.In areas such as the automotive and electronics industries, deliveries are being delayed.

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