Subway Line 5

From Beijingology

Subway Line 5 Ditie Wu Hao Xian 地铁五号线 地鐵五號綫
Number of Stations	23
Color	Purple
Length	27.6 km
Interchange Stations (total: 10; 5 currently in use)	Lishuiqiao (Line 13) Datunlu East (Line 15) Huixinxijie Nankou (Line 10) Yonghegong (Line 2) Dongsi (Line 6) Dongdan (Line 1) Chongwenmen (Line 2) Ciqikou (Line 7) Puhuangyu (Line 14) Songjiazhuang (Line 10 and Yizhuang Line)
Termini	Tiantongyuan North (northern terminus) Songjiazhuang (southern terminus)
Depots	Taipingzhuang North Depot
First Service	05:16 / 05:50 (Songjiazhuang / Tiantongyuan North)
Last Service	23:04 / 23:41 (Songjiazhuang / Tiantongyuan North)
Coverage	Northern to southern Beijing, through the city center
Rolling Stock	Nicknamed "The Eggplant" Prefixed TP (Taipingzhuang North Depot)
Journeys	476,100 (November 9, 2007 record)
Year Opened / Last Extension	October 7, 2007
Notes
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Line 5 of the Beijing Subway is the first north-south Subway line in the city. It was opened to the public at 14:00 on October 7, 2007 and runs from Tiantongyuan North Subway Station near Tiantongyuan on Municipal Highway 213 through to Songjiazhuang Subway Station. It links up with Subway Lines 1, 2, 10 and 13, and will link up with Lines 6, 7, 14, 15 and the Yizhuang Line.

Geographically, it runs through (from north to south) Municipal Highway 213 (Ansi Highway, also known as Tangli Road), Beiyuan Road, Huixin West Street, Yinghuayuan West Street, Hepingli West Street, Yonghegong Street, Dongsi North Street, Dongsi South Street, Dongdan North Street, Chongwenmen Inner Street, Chongwenmen Outer Street, Tiantan East Road, Puhuangyu Road and the Dongtiejiangying residential complex.

Trains on Subway Line 5 run with gaps as short as 3 minutes between trains.

History

Line 5 part of Dongdan station under construction (October 2004)

Subway Line 5 on its opening day: mass crowds both on the trains and in major stations

Inside a Line 5 train which has just left the northernmost terminus (Tiantongyuan North)

Construction on Subway Line 5 started in late 2002 as Beijing's first north-south underground railway line was being built. Plans for a Line 5 (which ran along pretty much the same route), however, surfaced as early as 1992.

Late-1981 plans saw the creation fo the first-ever Line 5 plans. The original Line 5 plans started off from what is now Hepingxiqiao, then called Hepingli, and headed south to Songjiazhuang. The 1981 plans also saw Line 5 call at Qiyuan, which has been abandoned before Line 5 went into operation. Amazingly enough, the 1981 Line 5 plans called at all present-day Line 5 stations (except for the added Qiyuan station, which Line 5 skips today), but ends at Hepingli. The section between Huixixijie Nankou and Tiantongyuan North was left out.

1999 plans saw very much Line 5 the way it is right now, with the exception of the addition of Qiyuan and Gongluyihuan stations. The 1999 plans also did not include Tiantongyuan Subway Station. For the first time, Songjiazhuang would include a linkup to the Yizhuang Line, then known as Line 11.

The naming of the Subway stations were confusing and changed a lot, especially in the northern stretch of Line 5 beyond the northern 3rd Ring Road. At first, two separate (and apparently unconnected) Lishuiqiao stations would be built, with Line 5 having another Lishuiqiao station named Lishuiqiao North. Oddly enough, Lishuiqiao North would be south of the Line 13 Lishuiqiao station. This convoluted arrangement was done away with in revised naming proposals. Also, the original plans called for no stop between what is now Tiantongyuan South Subway Station and Tiantongyuan North Subway Station, but local residents demanded (and got) the addition of Tiantongyuan Subway Station between the two.

When work got underway in late 2002, Gongluyihuan Subway Station and Qiyuan Subway Station were relegated to the dustbin of history before the two stations even had a chance to appear physically. Out of the original 24 stations, 23 made it to the final plan (with two removals and an addition).

Subway Line 5 was expected to have an at-ground station and come "above ground" after Heping West Bridge on the northern 3rd Ring Road; however, the at-ground station was eventually altered and the subway now comes "above ground" after Huixin West Bridge on the northern 4th Ring Road. The reason for the extended underground stretch was that the stretch between the 3rd and 4th Ring Roads ran through many residential complexes; an above-ground service would have been too much. The at-ground station still exists, but is now part of Lishuiqiao Subway Station.

The opening of the Line 5 was delayed from 2005 through to September 2007. It was expected to open on September 20, 2007; however, this was pushed back to October 7, 2007 with very little advance notice. The reasons for the delay were not widely known, but leaks due to mass rains that hit Huixinxijie Beikou Subway Station, as well as some last-minute construction works at stations, held up the opening.

Line 5 opened to the public at 14:00 on October 7, 2007. Travel on the new subway line peaked for the first few hours as crowds gathered inside and outside subway stations, buying commemorative subway tickets and stamps, snapping photos and crowding into subway trains. With the opening of the new subway line, real estate prices along the entire route also peaked; in particular, the opening of Line 5 had a positive effect on real estate in Tiantongyuan, which once showed lackluster results.

On the same date, all subway fares were unified by a new, unified price of CNY 2. This new price will remain as the standard fare to be paid across all lines except for the Airport Express.

Originally, the color for Line 5 was to be lime, but this was changed to purple.

Projected Sections

Subway Line 5 is expected to extend for about another 10 km further north to Xiaotangshan, which will be a new town home to 100,000. The current highway can easily accommodate the elevated subway line. The northern extension will run through Beiqijia Town, Xiaotangshan Town, Xingshou Town, Gaoliying Town and Baishan Town. No firm date for the extension, however, has been set.

Line 5 is set to link with more lines in the years to come. A link with Line 15 appears possible at the Datunlu East station before 2015, and the link to Line 6 is expected to be built by 2014. Line 5's connection to Line 7 is also slated for 2014, as is another link with Line 14. Opening soonest, though, is the link to the Yizhuang Line, which is slated for early 2012, as well as another Line 10 link (also at Songjiazhuang) by around 2013.

Route

Line 5 runs north-south except for a tiny segment from Liujiayao through to Songjiazhuang, where the subway line turns slightly southeast. It runs through parts of central Beijing, including the Yonghegong Lama Temple, Beixinqiao, Dongsi, Dengshikou, Dongdan and Chongwenmen, as well as Ciqikou and the Temple of Heaven.

The subway line runs through some of the narrowest trunk roads in Beijing, which are at most four lanes (two in each direction). This has had a considerable effect on the traffic, as more people are taking the subway, thus easing the above-ground congestion.

Line 5 is mainly a residential-and-touristic line, linking northern Beijing's Tiantongyuan residential community with its more southernly neighbors along Beiyuan Road before passing through the western part of the Hepingli residential community just south of the northern 3rd Ring Road. It continues two stations further south down to the Yonghegong Lama Temple, where at that station it connects with Line 2. Line 5 then heads near to hutongs in old central Beijing before meeting Chang'an Avenue at Dongdan, where an interchange to Line 1 is available.

Next, Line 5 enters southern Beijing at Chongwenmen, where there is another linkup with Line 2. Line 5 continues south down to the east gate of Temple of Heaven, calling there with a station there. It next heads into the heart of the Fangzhuang-Puhuangyu residential community just south of the southern 2nd Ring Road, with another stop at Liujiayao, before ending at Songjiazhuang, in the middle of the Dongtiejiangying residential complex.

The presence of Line 5 was never more felt than on the day immediately following its opening. Traffic jams, in essence, vanished from the ground in Tiantongyuan as the masses crammed into the new subway line. Within days, however, traffic jams resurfaced -- but the Line 5 ridership continued to peak from day to day.

Stations

Subway Line 5 has 23 stations, of which six (Tiantongyuan North - Tiantongyuan South, as well as Lishuiqiao South - Datunlu East) are above ground, one (Lishuiqiao) is on ground level, and the remaining 16 (Huixinxijie Beikou - Songjiazhuang) are underground. Underground stations appear in a brand new shape and form which looks like a glass cube with altenating stripes. The table below shows all stations from north to south.

Chongwenmen Subway Station (exterior)

Chongwenmen Subway Station (interior)

Exit-only escalators at Yonghegong Lama Temple Subway Station

Above ground stations are uniquely designed; no station is the same from another on the whole of Line 5. Red, cinnamon, grey and glass are the main colors used.

Most, if not all, Subway Line 5 stations are equipped with facilities for disabled travellers. All Line 5 stations use the Beijing Super Pass extensively, and the vast majority of stations come with touch pads designed to inform the passenger about subway news. All stations have electronic displays showing when the next train will arrive, as well as safety information (although all are presently in Chinese). Platform doors are present in all stations.

The vast majority of Subway Line 5 stations come with bicycle parking lots, and there is also a Super Pass-based P&R parking lot at Tiantongyuan North station.

Many station names have been changed from their original names (current names are given in bold), and two stations have been removed from the original plan:

• Taipingzhuang North (太平庄北) -- Tiantongyuan North
• Taipingzhuang (太平庄) -- Tiantongyuan South
• Lishuiqiao North (立水桥北) -- Lishuiqiao
• Dayangfang (大羊坊) -- Lishuiqiao South
• Gongluyihuan (公路一环) -- removed
• Datun (大屯) -- Datunlu East
• Ganyangshu (干杨树) -- Huixinxijie Beikou
• Beituchengdonglu (北土城东路) -- Huixinxijie Nankou
• Qiyuan (棋院) -- removed

One station was added:

• Tiantongyuan (天通苑) -- between Tiantongyuan North and Tiantongyuan South stations

Lishuiqiao station was reshifted from just south of the present-day Lishuiqiao station to the present Line 13 station position. Original plans called for two completely different (and unlinked) Lishuiqiao stations; one for Line 5, and another one for Line 13! Thanks to the modified naming scheme, the two Lishuiqiaos became one at the Line 13 Lishuiqiao station.

Interchanges

Lishuiqiao

Inside Lishuiqiao, an interchange station with Line 13

• Interchange with Line 13

The Line 5 / Line 13 interchange at Lishuiqiao is poorly designed. Crowded at times, in peak hour conditions it becomes absolutely packed and slows to a crawl. The problems are many: poor platform access (narrow, steep stairways); "flow" conflicts between 5 -> 13 and 13 -> 5 commuters; limited waiting areas (including clearly inadequate platform widths); and hard-to-read signs. (White-on-yellow text doesn't make the signs any easier to read, especially when the sign is not illuminated.)

No attempt whatsoever has been made to align the stations for ease of transfer; the journey between them is up and down stairs, around corners, and features several potential choke-points. However, the total distance covered is relatively less than compared to the other interchange stations on Line 13.

Dongdan

• Interchange with Line 1

In early 2008, Dongdan station was redone so that the two transfer passageways would be one-way instead of bidirectional. Passengers transferring to Line 1 (from Line 5) now use only the southern passageway; the northern passageway is reserved for incoming passengers from Line 1.

Yonghegong Lama Temple

• Interchange with Line 2

The transfer passageways at Yonghegong Lama Temple can be difficult for first-time users alighting from Line 5, as some exits are interchange-only, some are exit-only, and some are a mix!

Chongwenmen

• Interchange with Line 2

Chongwenmen is amongst one of the least crowded interchange stations. Two (relatively wide) staircases have been fitted into the Line 2 part of the station for Line 5 passengers.

Huixinxijie Nankou

• Interchange with Line 10

The interchange at Huixinxijie Nankou was designed for ease of transfer between the two lines. Passengers transferring to Line 10 need to choose their direction of travel first (as Line 10 uses side platforms), but once they do so, all they will need to do is to complete the transfer by going up to Underground Level 1. Passengers connecting to Line 5 will simply need to head to Underground Level 2. There are virtually no transfer passageways; everything is well integrated inside one station.

Planned Interchanges

• Datunlu East (with Line 15): Datunlu East is an above-ground Line 5 station; it is expected to become an interchange with Line 15, which runs underground. This interchange is expected to be in operation by 2015 at the latest.

• Dongsi (with Line 6): A link with Line 6 appears increasingly likely at Dongsi instead of at Longfusi Subway Station, which was once planned to link Meishuguandongjie and Dongsi stations as a "three-station, one-roof, four-line" interchange, which would have been the biggest underground station in China.

• Ciqikou (with Line 7): Line 7 is expected to link to Line 5 at Ciqikou. Exits B and C of the Line 5 part are presently not open as a result of the works still in progress.

• Puhuangyu (with Line 14): Line 14 links with Line 5 at Puhuangyu station, according to present plans. Line 14 will head into Fangzhuang in a west-east direction; Line 5 continues the trek north-south.

• Songjiazhuang (with Line 10 and the Yizhuang Line): Songjiazhuang will be a three-line interchange by 2012, when all of Line 10 and the Yizhuang Line open up. Already beginning in late 2010, it will become an interchange with the Yizhuang Line.

Future Interchanges

• Zhangzizhonglu (with Line 3): Line 3 is expected to cross Line 5's path at Zhangzizhonglu station, right on what is termed "Ping'an Boulevard".

Trains

Line 5 trains have an instantly recognizable "forehead" which is slanted and which have two "eyes" (lights) that almost look like the face of someone who appears to be frowning. The livery of the train is purple, thus earning it the nickname The Eggplant (茄子), although some call it by a minor nickname The Girl (丫头).

All Line 5 trains are in the TP series, where TP stands for the Taipingzhuang North Depot, just north of the northern terminus at Tiantongyuan North.

Service Frequency

Service intervals on Subway Line 5 started with a minimum gap of 4 minutes between the trains; on July 5, 2008, this was shortened to 3 minutes 30 seconds. On July 19, 2008 gaps were further shortened to 3 minutes.

Fares

Passengers at a ticket office; paper-based tickets were sold through June 8, 2008, and Beijing Super Passes can be topped up as well

Fares are a unified CNY 2. Line 5 has used the Beijing Super Pass right from the start. Interchanges between all lines (except for the Airport Express) are free; passengers will not incur interchange penalties transferring to lines immediately connecting with Line 5. New ticket barriers were put into place effective June 9, 2008.

Security

Half-sized platform doors inside Lishuiqiao Subway Station

All Subway Line 5 stations are equipped with platform doors. Full-sized platform doors are used for all underground stations; above-ground stations use half-size platform doors. These doors are automatically opened with those in the train; the doors in the train often open up first, and a second later, the ones on the platform open up as well. When trains prepare to leave, the platform doors are first closed before the doors in the train are closed as well with a minor delay.

Platform screen doors can be opened from the inside in the case of an emergency. There is also a hidden switch which can be operated by subway personnel that allows them to be opened from the platform, if they cannot open at the same time as the doors on the train.

In the case of a breakdown in the screen doors, subway personnel will use a temporary barrier to control access to the train.

Passengers are advised not to lean against either the doors in the train or the platform screen doors.

All stations are staffed with security personnel. Some stations also have a police presence.

Sources and References

• CN: 市规划委表示 地铁5号线将适时北延至小汤山 (北京青年报) (November 18, 2007, accessed November 18, 2007)
• CN: 16日地铁全网客运量再创新高达到288.99万人次 (北京地铁) (November 17, 2007, accessed November 17, 2007)
• CN: 北京地铁5号线车站被雨水浸泡 将推迟开通 (睿商在线) (September 29, 2007, accessed October 21, 2007)

Beijing Subway Line 5 (Tiantongyuan North - Songjiazhuang) 23 stations • 27.6 km • Minimum 3 minutes between trains

Tiantongyuan North, Tiantongyuan, Tiantongyuan South, Lishuiqiao (⇆ Line 13), Lishuiqiao South, Beiyuanlu North, Datunlu East (⇆ Line 15), Huixinxijie Beikou, Huixinxijie Nankou (⇆ Line 10), Hepingxiqiao, Hepinglibeijie, Yonghegong Lama Temple (⇆ Line 2), Beixinqiao, Zhangzizhonglu, Dongsi (⇆ Line 6), Dengshikou, Dongdan (⇆ Line 1), Chongwenmen (⇆ Line 2), Ciqikou (⇆ Line 7), Tiantandongmen, Puhuangyu (⇆ Line 14), Liujiayao, Songjiazhuang (⇆ Line 10 and Yizhuang Line) ⇆ interchange stations; items in italics refer to lines not yet opened

Beijing Subway System (Current as of July 19, 2008)

1 (and Batong), 2, 5, 8 (S Gate of Forest Park - Beitucheng), 10 (Bagou - Jinsong), 13 | Airport Express Under construction: 4, 6, 8 (Huoying N - S Gate of Forest Park and Beitucheng - Meishuguandongjie), 9, 10 (Panjiayuan - Huoqiying), Daxing, Yizhuang Under planning: 3, 7, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17 | Changping, Datai, Fangshan, Xijiao Items in italics refer to lines not yet opened. (Next opening: Line 4 (Anheqiao North - Gongyixiqiao) on September 30, 2009)