Sunny weather predicted for 1st work day
Shanghai will enjoy sunny to cloudy weather tomorrow, the first day of work after the Spring Festival holiday, weatherman said yesterday.
But overcast and rainy days are expected from Monday to Wednesday and temperatures are unlikely to change much.
Today is seen to be fine, with the highest temperature at 12 degrees Celsius and the lowest at 4 degrees.
Tomorrow the temperatures are expected to hover between 5 and 13 degrees.
From Monday the weather will alternate between drizzle and cloudy, the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau said.
Monday is seen to be cloudy and drizzle is possible, with temperatures from 7 to 14 degrees. Drizzle is likely on Tuesday with temperatures from 6 to 10 degrees Celsius. Wednesday will be cloudy to drizzle, with temperatures of 5 to 11 degrees Celsius. --(1/31)
Shanghai receives 1.57 mln tourists in first three days of Spring Festival
Shanghai has received 1.57 million tourists in the first three days of the weeklong holiday of traditional Spring Festival, according to local authorities yesterday.
Statistics from the holiday management office of Shanghai municipal government showed that the number was up 4.7 percent from the same period of last year.
A folk lantern fair attracted 1.18 million tourists, up 12.3 percent from last year. The landmark Oriental Pearl Tower and the Jinmao Tower, the tallest building in the Chinese mainland and second tallest in Asia, greeted 660,000 and 170,000 tourists, up 4.8 percent and 13.3 percent, respectively.
Good weather was cited as a reason for the increase.
Spring Festival fell on this past Monday. It is the biggest festival for the Chinese people. --(1/30)
People's Square Metro gets a bit more space
An extra platform and five new escalators will go into service today at the People's Square Metro Station to ease the overcrowding that has been disturbing passengers from Line 8 trains.
The new platform is on the other side of the tracks. Trains on Line 8 will now open their doors on both sides at the People's Square Station.
The five extra escalators only travel upward.
"With the extra platform and escalators, we hope the crowds will be able to leave and disperse quickly after they get off the trains on Line 8," said Huang Qiongnuo, an official with Shanghai Metro Operation Co Ltd.
She said the number of passengers riding Metro Line 8 every day jumped to 200,000 after it was opened in December 2007. During rush hours, the original platform for Line 8 at the People's Square Station had constantly been overcrowded as people could not get off the platform quickly because it was too narrow. Most of the passengers are interchanging to Lines 1 or 2.
"We had a lot of complaints from passengers about safety. So we decided to make use of the space originally reserved to park trains and build an extra platform," Huang said.
"The builders overcame major difficulties because they could only work from 11pm to 4am after the Metro closed and had to avoid disturbing normal Metro services." --(1/24)
More trains
More subway trains were added to Metro Line 9 yesterday, which should cut the time between trains from 10 minutes to no more than eight-and-a-half.
The second phase of the line, extending from Yishan Road through Xujiahui and Yanggao M. Road, is expected to operational by the end of the year. --(1/23)
College hopes
Colleges and universities in Shanghai will accept 72,000 high school graduates this year, the Shanghai Education Committee said. About 83,000 high school graduates have applied to sit the college entrance examination. --(1/22)
Zoos plan Spring Festival activities
Two local zoos will host ox-themed events during the Spring Festival holiday to mark the coming Year of the Ox.
The Shanghai Zoo and the Shanghai Wildlife Park will hold the exhibitions to give visitors a better idea of oxen, buffaloes and cows.
Children visiting the Shanghai Zoo can also play with two golden takin cubs during the festival. The cubs were born this month.
"Golden takins are a breed of ox. They are the most good-looking oxen," said Pan Xiuwen, who works at the zoo.
The Shanghai Zoo will renovate the enclosures of all its animals before the 2010 World Expo, officials said yesterday.
"The animals will be more comfortable in enclosures that are more like their natural environment," said Xiong Chengpei, director of the zoo.
During the annual meeting of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a proposal was made to relocate the zoo to Nanhui District to make way for the development of the Hongqiao area.
Xiong said the zoo, which is home to 6,000 animals, will not move. "No matter how developed Hongqiao gets, it needs a piece of green land," Xiong said. "The 55-year-old zoo is a precious childhood memory for millions of Shanghai residents.
"We don't want to see the memory demolished." --(1/21)
Temple auction
The Longhua Buddhist Temple raised 3.02 million yuan (US$440,875) in its Lunar New Year charity auction this year.
The nine items put up for auction, including paintings, sculptures and antiques, were donated either by famous local artists or the temple itself. All the money raised will be for the needy families via the Shanghai Charity Foundation. --(1/20)
Villa reopens
The restored Moller Villa at 30 Shaanxi Road S. in Jing'an District reopened to the public yesterday.
Now a hotel, the 73-year-old Scandinavian-style villa still contains most of the decorative features it had when it was built, said the building's owner, the Shanghai Hengshan (Group) Corp. --(1/19)
Discount card to aid city's tourism
The city will promote a tourist payment card this year. Visitors who pay the admission fees to scenic spots with the card will be able to enjoy certain discounts, said the Shanghai Tourism Administration.
The size of the discounts will depend on how long tourists stay in Shanghai. Officials said they would like to encourage visitors to stay in the city longer.
The payment card can also be used to buy tickets for shows and pay for dining and public transport.
For the past three years, the city has promoted a "tourist passport," which also gives visitors discounts. Those with a tourist passport can also participate in prize draws at the end of every year.
At the annual session of the Shanghai People's Congress, a deputy proposed yesterday that the city should develop its water attractions.
"At present the water tour packages in the city are dull. There is still huge room for development," said the deputy, Chen Xiuping.
He said the city should develop its tourist attractions on sea, river, creek, lake and beach.
The administration said the city is already working on a tour route from the Huangpu River to Dianshan Lake in Qingpu District.
"Once the itinerary is complete, tourists will be able to sightsee from the suburbs to the downtown area by boat," said Dao Shuming, director of the administration.
Dao also said tour ideas for Suzhou Creek are under consideration.
"We plan to hold sports such as dragon boat racing on the creek after the water quality improves," he said. --(1/17)
Shanghai will offer 'one card pass' to boost tourism
Shanghai's tourism administration will enact various measures to boost tourism in the city including issuing a¡°one-card pass¡±to travelers.
"This one card pass is similar to the city's transport card. The one-card pass can be used at scenic spots, restaurants and performances. Travelers that stay in the city longer will get additional bonuses on the card,"said Cheng Meihong, spokeswoman for the city's tourism administration.
Shanghai residents will receive discounted tourism packages to boost the city's travel-related industries. --(1/16)
Expo memo
An exhibition about the Shanghai World Expo opened at Putuo Library yesterday, its first stop on a city tour throughout 2009.
The exhibition, at 1800 Daduhe Road until January 20, features pictures of the pavilion designs for Expo 2010 and details of previous Expos. People can visit the exhibition free from 9am to 4:30pm.
The exhibition will go on show in the city's 18 districts and Chongming County during the year. --(1/15)
Expo may lead to 85,000 new jobs
Every 1,000-square-meter exhibition area at the 2010 World Expo will create more than 100 new jobs in Shanghai, a former leader of the city's planning body said at an online forum yesterday.
The number of jobs may well be much higher than previous expectations, Jiang Yingshi, former director of Shanghai Municipal Development and Reform Commission, said on Eastday.com. Jiang is a member of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, the city's top advisory body.
The total exhibition area of the Expo is 850,000 square meters, so the 2010 event could create at least 85,000 new jobs.
Jiang took part in the online chat after the annual plenary session of the Shanghai Committee of the CPPCC during which Wu Jiansheng, a professor at Tongji University, proposed a smoking ban on the Expo site.
Also yesterday, Li Liangzuo, a member of the top advisory body, suggested that the city government try to make toilets available inside every subway station and improve toilet signs.
At stations where toilets cannot be built, signs should guide passengers to the nearest public toilet, Li said --(1/14)
Sub-zero city
The minimum temperature will drop to between minus 1 and minus 3 degrees Celsius today and tomorrow, because another cold front hit the city yesterday afternoon.
Highs will range between 5 and 7 degrees. It will be sunny with patchy clouds, the Shanghai Meteorological Bureau said. --(1/13)
Caterers Hungry For Expo Prize
World-class Chinese and international caterers are competing to feed visitors to the 2010 Shanghai World Expo.
The organizer is seeking caterers for highend dining, chic cafes, cafeterias and fast food offering the tastiest and greenest cuisines from around the world.
The tender process is under way and the organizer will announce the caterers selected in June. A 150,000-squaremeter area within the Expo site will be dedicated to food.
Meanwhile, construction of the two underground levels of Expo Boulevard, the main gateway to the Expo Site, is complete. The boulevard will be a transportation and commercial center with restaurants and entertainment venues. --(1/12)
Pudong prepares to boost FAI to US$14.6b
The Pudong New Area will boost fixed asset investment to 100 billion yuan (US$14.6 billion) this year against 85 billion yuan last year, according to the district's plan for this year, which was approved on Friday.
Pudong's gross domestic product jumped 11.8 percent year on year to 310 billion yuan last year, and its government said it targets to generate GDP of more than 340 billion yuan this year.
The district will invest about 40 billion yuan on construction projects for the Expo 2010 and to improve the lives of local residents. The rest 60 billion yuan will be invested in road building works and the development of finance, logistics and high-tech sectors. --(1/11)
GPS will guide visitors during Expo
The 2010 Shanghai World Expo visitors will not have to worry about getting lost next year.
Visitors will be able to use their mobile phones to download global positioning system software for free, an official of AutoNavi, a Beijing-based digital map and location-based service provider, said yesterday after the company signed a project sponsor contract with the Expo organizers.
Visitors will need to have a smartphone that can download software, said Hou Jun, chairman of AutoNavi Software.
Visitors will get a digital map of the site on their handsets and be told what areas are crowded, Hou said.
Visitors can download the software via both the General Packet Radio Service network, or GPRS, and new networks for 3G mobile phones, Hou added.
Most Chinese mobile phones can access GPRS while licenses for 3G mobile phones were issued earlier this week.
Buses inside the Expo site and those running near the site will facilitate GPS devices. --(1/10)
Line 6 upgrades
The interval between trains on Metro Line 6 will be reduced to three-and-half minutes later this year.
New carriages will be delivered in June and the city's subway operator will put them into use upon completion of safety tests. The interval is presently more than six minutes. --(1/9)
First-Aid center gets faster
City residents can expect service within 30 seconds when the Shanghai First-Aid Center opens its upgraded 120 hotline in the middle of this month.
The first-aid center has invested about 5 million yuan (US$731,527) to improve the service. --(1/8)
Editing work starts on Shanghai volume
The editing work of a chronicle for China's Shanghai volume started with the Municipal Communist Party Committee and Municipal government's approval.
The volume is dedicated to showcasing Shanghai's reform achievements, city glamour and its preparations for World Expo 2010.
The volume will consist of two books with 300,000 Chinese characters and 2,000 pictures with a full English translation. It will focus on building modes and Shanghai Expo preparations. A detailed recording of Shanghai's transformation in the reform and opening-up era will also be included. --(1/7)
Museum opens
The Shanghai Integrated Circuit Museum opened in Zhangjiang High-Tech Park yesterday. The museum displays the process of IC development, adoption of IC technology in industry and life and future trends.
Interactive items and a cylindrical projection screen broadcasting IC-related films are also featured at the museum, which is open from Tuesday to Sunday. The museum hotline is 5896-0729 and the Website is www.shicmuseum.spreadtrum.com. --(1/6)
Yan'an Road set to look better
Many visual improvements are to be made along the elevated Yan¡¯an Road, one of Shanghai¡¯s main arterial routes.
Illegal billboards will be removed, buildings will be repainted and new roads and green space will be added, according to the improvement plan.
The make-over will extend through five districts¡ªHuangpu, Jing An, Changning, Luwan and Minhang¡ªas part of a beautification build-up in advance of Expo in 2010.
Deputy mayor Shen Jun, who is in charge of the visual improvements, checked the plan¡¯s progress on the weekend and recommended further improvements. --(1/5)
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