Transport services accelerating to normal operation as health emergency response downgraded

Transportation services in the city are gradually returning to normal, with temporary measures being adjusted after the government downgraded the local health emergency response, the Shanghai Transport Bureau said on Saturday.

Buses traveling to other cities, except those to Wuhan, the center of China's coronavirus outbreak, are encouraged to resume full operations, said Yang Xiaoxi, deputy director of Shanghai Transport Commission.

As of March 27, 150 bus companies and 21 bus centers in the city have reopened, including Hongqiao West Station, Meilan Lake station and Pudong East station.

Over 5,000 workers from Jiangsu, Anhui, Shandong, Henan and Jiangxi provinces have returned to Shanghai by chartered bus.

Passenger information registration and the 50 percent capacity limit for provincial buses have been lifted.

According to Yang, health inspections at city borders have been stopped, while random checks will be conducted at 10 water ports.

Meanwhile, passengers will no longer have their temperatures checked at bus centers near train stations and airports, but temperature check is still a must for provincial buses and water services.

This week, bus passengers in the city increased 13 percent over last week to about 2.8 million.

Taxi services including car-hailing and car rentals have fully resumed, except those heading to Wuhan, Yang said.

Ferry services, including those to the Chongming, Changxing and Hengsha islands, have witnessed normal operation since January 23.

Yang also reminded passengers to keep wearing masks during their trips and scan the health QR code to prevent the spread of the virus.