Shanghai delays maglev rail plan

[John Ashworth]

Shanghai delays rail plan after protests
By Geoff Dyer in Shanghai

Published: March 7 2008 02:00 | Last updated: March 7 2008 02:00

Shanghai's local governmenthas backed off construction work on a new electromagnetic train line until at least next year after the proposed development triggered mass protests.

Han Zheng, Shanghai's mayor, said yesterday that the new line, which has prompted a series of protests from people living near the planned track, was not on the list of major projects to be started this year.

The magnetic levitation (maglev) track has become an important test of the potential for political activism among the country's new middle class, especially residents of the wealthier cities who have acquired their own property over the past decade.

Last year saw big demonstrations in the southern city of Xiamen over plans to build a chemical factory in a suburban area.

These, along with the dispute over the maglev project, have suggested there could be limits on the government's ability to pursue large projects in urban areas.

The original maglev track in Shanghai was developed by Transrapid International, a joint venture between Germany's Siemens and ThyssenKrupp.

Negotiations have been held with Transrapid over the extension, but the authorities have yet to announce the technology to be used or who will pay for it.

Speaking on the sidelines of the National People's Congress meeting in Beijing, Mr Han said the government had yet to approve the extension plan and that the city was still consulting health experts about possible risks from the maglev technology. Mr Han's conciliatory comments reflect official concern about the heated emotions the proposed new line has stirred among the well-to-do residents of one of Shanghai's suburbs.

The city opened its first maglev line in 2002, running to its new international airport. The authorities have since developed plans to extend the line to the city's domestic airport.

When work began last May to relocate people living near the new track, residents launched a series of large protests outside local government offices, and the authorities then announced the construction project had been put on hold.

A new plan was published earlier this year, which prompted another series of unauthorised protests, including one involving several hundred people marching through People's Square in the city centre on what they called a "collective walk".

The organisers of the protests have since asked the Shanghai local government for formal permission to stage another demonstration, but the request has been declined.

"Every citizen has the right to express their own opinion, but they have to express their opinion in accordance with corresponding legal procedures," Mr Han was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.

Lu Guanfeng, one of the protest organisers, said: "Until the Shanghai government announces that the project has been completely cancelled, we will still try to protect our own rights."

Despite the government's claims to be consulting residents on the project, he said he knew of no one who had actually been asked for their opinion.

Meanwhile, Mr Han said the city government had applied to Beijing for permission to build a Disneyland entertainment park in Shanghai.

Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008