Chongqing says 'yes' to farmers carrying bamboo baskets on the subway

A recent online debate about whether public transport authorities in Chongqing should allow farmers to carry large baskets on the subway during rush hour has made headlines.

With the rapid urbanization of southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, more subway lines are rolling out to the rural areas around the city, particularly Line 4, a 32.8-kilometer-long subway line linking the city's northeast stations Huangling and Shichuan to central downtown, and which has many farmers boarding with baskets early in the morning.

The baskets, usually made of bamboo, are filled with fresh produce which farmers plan to sell in the city. The baskets are the signature of many local farmers as they are durable and lightweight. As a long-lasting practice, many farmers would balance two baskets with a pole on their shoulders.

According to a suggestion raised by internet users on the municipal government's online inquiry platform, carrying such baskets should be banned during rush hours as they take up too much space and cause trouble for other passengers in the limited cabin space.

However, the official response from Chongqing Rail Transit says passengers can carry items on board the subway as long as they do not exceed a certain size and weight.

Chongqing Rail Transit says if the vegetable baskets leave odors or juice that soils the carriages, there will be staffers to clean the cabins. Passengers can also call the service hotline to inform the company of such matters.

The response was warmly welcomed by local farmers as well as the general public. One netizen comment went, "A subway line, an inclusive city, should tolerate both the farmers who carry baskets and those nine-to-fivers who carry laptops, as they essentially have no difference."