Stress 2: Transport
Getting around Shanghai often gives me a headache, because it is so chaotic and unpredictable.
Taxis
Taxis are cheap and convenient as long as you hail them to get to work before 7 am. Getting home is a different matter. Half hour journeys easily get dragged out into 100 minute epics that are snarled up by bumper to bumper gridlock, bad driving, confused drivers getting lost, rain, fog, snow and the unwelcome proliferation of personal motoring.
This is a case where wisdom of the crowds is overshadowed by collective individual stupidity. Driver A wants to get to his destination quickly so he changes lane whenever he sees the slightest gap. Driver B also thinks this is a good way to edge forward, as does every other male driver. The net result is that everyone is so preoccupied with changing lanes that it takes everyone twice as long to arrive at their destination. Meanwhile, the passengers get queasy, bored and frustrated as they fail again to arrive on time for an appointment. I am convinced that female drivers are more considerate and reasonable than their male counterparts, although I have no evidence to backup this stereotype.
Getting a taxi in the first place is a big problem around major shopping streets like Huai Hai Lu and Nanjing Lu when office workers are heading home or when the weather is bad. See my post on taxi hacks.
Buses
Buses are cheap at 2 RMB a journey, but this is another case where poor language skills can get you into trouble. The bus timetables and signs are all in Chinese. The buses are always crowded and you need to hang on to your bag and wallet, because such confined places are ripe for pick pocketing. Finding a seat is like finding a taxi. It’s every man and woman for themselves regardless of age or pregnancy status. You also need to know where to disembark. Last night our mistake was to remain on the bus past the last stop in Puxi so we mistakenly ended up on the other side of Nanpu Bridge during a blizzard.
Cycling
Getting around by bicycle is cheap and direct, but it is likely to shorten your lifespan. There are cycle lanes, but these are not always very clear on unfamiliar routes. You are constantly getting cut up by other vehicles and cyclists. The biggest fear happens when you make a turn. You cannot always see the cars that are tailgating or approaching you in the opposite direction. At night this is made worse by poor visibility and the fact that cyclists do not use lights. Making yourself seen is a hazard. I have witnessed people getting knocked off their bicycles by taxi doors being opened. I have seen really crazy cyclists nip through small gaps as if they are invincible, but such maverick displays of confidence seem unwarranted. I have not seen any facts or figures about the number of cycling accidents, but I suspect it is high.
It is worth reading Douglas Williams’ Shanghai Daily recent rant about the need to support cycling in this city.
Only the merest crumbs are ever thrown down to the cyclists.
In Shanghai and Beijing there are still at least five cyclists to every motorist.
One must presume that those many millions of cyclists must be wondering why so much money is spent on so few and why things are getting more difficult for them.
Why is so much of this city now a no-go for cyclists?
Why are the cycle lanes so poorly maintained and enforced?
Why are those few streets given over entirely to cyclists in such poor repair?
And can’t capital punishment be applied to the bicycle thieves?
Perhaps the cyclists are feeling despondent and gloomy, or perhaps they’re feeling very, very angry and let down.
There is the chronic worry that your bike will have been stolen, although this may be blessing because the recent snowfall in Shanghai makes the daily bicyclye commute appear almost suicidal.
Be careful of servicing your bike or moped. My brother in law lost the top half of one finger when it got in the wheel of his moped.
Metro
Getting around by metro is great as long as you are near a station. The signs and maps are in English and Shanghai has at least seven metro lines as we speak. More are planned to come on line over the next few years. The problems of travelling by bus still remain when you are on the metro. It is not very pleasant to be travelling cheek by jowl with so many people who are pushing and shoving each other to edge forward onto and off the trains. You have to follow suit or face getting crushed underfoot in the stampede. It would not be so bad if boarding passengers waited for ten seconds as people got out of the carriage. It would make metro journeys far less stressful, but it is not yet socially unacceptable to push and shove your way around Shanghai’s metro system. Let’s hope this changes one day.
Walking
Walking can be very time consuming, but at least you know how long the journey is going to take you. It keeps you moderately fit and you get to see the city directly. It is not always ideal. Drivers and cyclists do not give you the time of day to cross the street even when the green man gives you the nod. You can get hassled or fined for by traffic attendants for jay walking even though motorists drive like lunatics, only being stopped by gridlock or serious prangs. There is no easy way to walk from Pudong to Puxi and vice versa, although I read about a crazy foreigner who walked back to Puxi from Pudong, which took all day. The journey is more than 35 kms. See Shanghai Expat :: View topic - Jenming’s walking home from Pudong Airport.
For the sane among us, it is only pleasant to walk in the autumn and spring. The winter has really nasty northerly, arcitc winds and it is just too humid to walk around very much at the peak of the summer.
Listing the hassles of travelling around Shanghai does not mean other cities are perfect. Putting 20 million people in one city will always challenge transport facilities and the city planners have done an amazing job considering the number of people who live here. Again, I am not bashing Shanghai by reflecting the problems of getting around. It is a useful starting point for a later post when I will suggest some hints and hacks that can make this whole process much easier.
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