Luxury seats coming out of bullet trains
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A bullet train running from Beijing to Shanghai |
Luxury seats will be missing from many of the fast trains that will soon travel on a high-speed railway running from Beijing to Shanghai, giving passengers more room and making the ride cheaper, railway sources were quoted as saying.
Beijing Daily quoted an anonymous source from the railway sector on Wednesday as saying that luxury seats are being removed from most of the bullet trains. The trains are to begin running on the high-speed railway in June.
Previous reports had said that bullet trains, which will race along a 1,318-km-long railway, will be equipped with seats and other accommodations meant to ensure business travelers can travel in luxury, comfort and privacy.
As planned, the trains will contain cars used to cater to honored guests, or VIPs, as well as private cabins with seats that can be made into flat beds.
The inclusion of luxury seats similar to the first-class seats found on airplanes was once proposed as a means of drawing affluent travelers away from the airlines that fly between the country's top two metropolises.
But not all are attracted by the idea of the accommodations. Rather than luxury, many people have been clamoring for more affordable public transport.
Early this year, fast trains linking Shanghai and Chengdu in Sichuan province started to sell tickets giving travelers a berth in a luxurious sleeper car. The price of a single trip in the car came to 2,330 yuan ($357), a cost that prompted complaints of extravagance.
As a result, some of the luxury sleeping cars were removed in March. Regular seats were installed in their place, giving more passengers a cheaper ride.
