Shanghai's Metro Line 9 Station opening delayed

YISHAN Road Station on Metro Line 9 will not join the line to open as scheduled on Saturday due to problems relocating nearby residents, Metro officials said yesterday.

"We will open the entire line as soon as possible," Wu Xinyin, a publicity official of Shanghai Shentong Metro Group, said yesterday. He added the station may not open until late next year.

Once complete, Yishan Road Station will enable passengers to transfer between Line 3 and Line 4.

The first phase of Line 9 is 30.7 kilometers and will link rural Songjiang District with Yishan Road downtown. The line has 13 stations, including Yishan Road.

For the foreseeable future, the eastern terminal will be Guilin Road Station while the problems are resolved at Yishan Road.

He said 16 six-car Metro trains will be used on Line 9. The initial interval between trains will be about 14 minutes but it will be shortened in April, when new trains are added.

Metro managers are planning a transferable ticketing area between the three lines at Yishan Road Station, but it is not clear when that will be completed.

"We are still trying to build a completely transferable passage," said Yang Guoxiang, chief engineer of Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Company.

Line 9 will add a link to key areas including the college campuses in Songjiang, Qibao Town and the Caohejing Development Zone.